Oct 18, 2017

Archived: St. Cloud City Council Member Wants To Limit Somali Refugee Resettlement

ST. CLOUD, Minn. (AP) – A St. Cloud City Council member plans to propose a moratorium on refugee resettlement.

Jeff Johnson says he’s concerned about "the overall quality of life" for St. Cloud residents and wants to limit refugee resettlement until the city gets more information about the number of people moving to the city and the cost to taxpayers. Several council members say Johnson’s proposal is off base because resettlement is not the city’s responsibility.

The number of refugees admitted into the U.S. is determined by the federal government. The Minnesota chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations launched a petition drive to urge the council to vote against Johnson’s proposal which he plans to introduce next month.

The chapter’s executive director and St. Cloud State University graduate Jaylani Hussein calls the proposal is despicable and racist.

The proposal may be on Monday’s City Council’s agenda. More than 10,000 Somali nationals now call St. Cloud home after fleeing their war-torn homeland.

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