LETTER: AN AMERICAN TOWN AND “THE SOMALI INVASION”, THE

Directed by Ziad H. Hamzeh

USA, 2003 , 76 min.

The Letter: An American Town and “The Somali Invasion” takes place in the wake of the 9/11 tragedy. A firestorm erupts when Mayor Larry Raymond of Lewiston, Maine, sends a letter to 1,100 newly arrived Somali refugees advising them that, due to strained city resources, additional Somalis should not move to the city. The film documents the ensuing controversy that culminates in an anti-immigrant rally convened by the World Church of the Creator and a counter demonstration involving nearly 4,000 Lewiston residents supporting ethnic and cultural diversity.

Sponsored by PCC Office of Affirmative Action and Equity and Somali American Council of Oregon.