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Five Ways To Help Refugees In Nashville

This past week, you probably heard about the executive order to suspend all refugee admissions to the United States for 120 days, block citizens of 7 Muslim-majority countries for 90 days and stop all refugee resettlement from Syria indefinitely. This affects many of our friends and neighbors right here in Nashville.

For these folks, there’s a whole lot of uncertainty right now. In times like these, as Mr. Rogers always said, “Look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping.” No matter which side of the fence you sit on, we believe that helping our neighbors is something we can all get behind.

So here are 5 ways you can help our immigrants and refugees in Nashville this week:

1. Help a new American with their citizenship classes. Refugees are given the opportunity to become citizens after 5 years in the US. Help them prepare for the language and civics test so they can become the newest American citizen with Legacy Mission Village.
2. Donate some dollars. ESL-to-Go is a mobile classroom program that makes English classes accessible to refugees by driving their 34-foot truck into refugee populated apartment complexes. In response to the recent executive orders, Tennessee Foreign Language Institute is establishing an emergency interpretation and translation services fund. Your donation allows Limited English Proficient Tennesseans who are directly affected by these orders to receive pertinent and credible information in their native language.
3. Become an English tutor. World Relief Nashville is seeking volunteers to tutor one-on-one with refugees or teach English classes. If you are interested in volunteering as a tutor, just shoot them an email.
4. Become a refugee youth mentor. Through Catholic Charities, a refugee youth mentor will act as a role model, advocate, and supporter of a refugee youth between 9 and 17 years old. More on that here.
5. Eat at Nashville’s immigrant-run eateries! This is something we can all be onboard with: Supporting our immigrant community one bite at a time. Here’s a handy list of places to start.

For a more extensive look at volunteer opportunities in Nashville, download these New American Volunteer Opportunities.

Trump yafungiye imiryango impunzi zo muri Syria

Perezida Donald Trump wa Leta zunze ubumwe za Amerika yafashe icyemezo kibuza impunzi zo mu Syria kwinjira muri Amerika kugeza igihe atavuze.

Ibi biri mu iteka yafashe rinakumira abandi bimukira bifuza kujya muri Amerika.

Trump yavuze ko iki cyemezo kigamije gutuma intagondwa zigendera ku matwara akaze y'idini ya Islamu zitabasha kwegera Amerika.

Iri teka kandi ryanahagaritse gahunda yo kwakira impunzi izo arizo zose muri Amerika mu gihe cy'amezi ane.

Inkambi y'impunzi zo muri Syria

Alleged French Police Rape of a Man Could Set the Country on Fire

CRUEL AND UNUSUAL

ERIN ZALESKI

02.10.17 11:52 AM ET

PARIS—The young man's story is nothing short of horrific. 

Stopped by police during an identity check last week in Aulnay-sous-Bois, a gritty suburb on the edge of Paris, the 22-year-old allegedly was forced to the ground, beaten, and raped with a police baton.

"He took his baton and deliberately drove it into my butt," the man, identified as "Theo" in the French press told BFMTV on Monday from his hospital bed. "I fell on my stomach, I had no strength left."

Theo recalled struggling to walk as the officers dragged him to a nearby police car.

"I thought I was going to die," he said.

So severe were his injuries that the youth worker with no criminal record required emergency surgery and remains hospitalized. His sister told French media that the long-term effects of the assault are not yet known.

The case has shocked France, and demonstrators have since gathered in Paris, Nantes, and Rennes to denounce police brutality. Fears continue that any efforts by the police to cover up what happened—or that even seem to cover it up—could spark widespread rioting in the same areas that ignited violence all over France in the autumn of 2005.

Grainy footage of the altercation shows four officers standing over a young black man lying on the ground near a concrete wall. Two officers are then shown leading the man, who appears to be limping, to a squad car. Once inside the car, Theo said he was subjected to additional blows, as well as to racist insults.

All four officers were arrested following the incident. Rape charges have been filed against one cop, while the three others were slapped with assault charges. In a statement, Interior Minister Bruno Le Roux confirmed that all four had been suspended pending the investigation, saying that "exemplary conduct and respect must guide the behavior of security forces at all times." 

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In a bid to quell rising outrage, French president Francois Hollande paid a visit to Theo in the hospital on Tuesday, praising the young man's "dignity and responsibility" in the face of his ordeal. Celebrities have also chimed in on Twitter, expressing anger and calling for justice. 

"Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere," French actor and comedian Omar Sy tweeted, quoting Martin Luther King Jr., while French actor Vincent Cassel called the incident "a national shame."

Despite the damning video evidence, cops deny Theo's claims, saying they had only been trying to get control of an unruly suspect. Frédéric Gabet, the lawyer for the officer facing rape charges, told BFMTV that the young man had violently resisted arrest, even arguing that the penetration with the baton was "accidental." 

"This action occurred in a very specific context during a skirmish with this boy, who is 6 feet 2 inches tall, and was struggling like the devil," said Gabet. "The police were using every method they could to bring him to the ground, including the baton. In these conditions a deliberate act doesn't align with the victim's statement."

"The police never pulled down his pants, his boxer shorts were pierced [by the baton]." he added.

Several of Theo's friends and family members have spoken out on his behalf, describing him as a gentle individual who works with young people and is well liked in the community.

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"When I hear [from the police version] that he hit a policeman, I don't believe it," a 27-year-old security guard who has known Theo's family since childhood, told AFP. "With others, you could imagine, but not him."

The president of the French chapter of SOS Racisme told The Daily Beast that given the amount of force necessary to cause the type of injuries Theo suffered, he had a difficult time believing that the assault was "completely accidental."

"Whether or not the injury he suffered was involuntary or not, Theo was a victim of unjustified police violence," said Dominique Sopo.

The brutality of the arrest  hit a nerve in Aulnay-sous-Bois and neighboring suburbs, In 2005 they were the scene of rioting that spread across the country after two young men were accidentally electrocuted while fleeing police. And for the past six nights youths have clashed with officers and set fire to cars and structures, first in Aulnay-sous-Bois, and later in the neighboring Seine Saint-Denis region, despite Theo's call for calm from his hospital bed.

In the riots that tore through the suburbs more than a decade ago, groups of angry young men torched vehicles and public building, prompting the country to declare a state of national emergency and bringing France's suburbs into the global spotlight.

Although they sit just north of Paris, the suburbs, banlieues in French, are worlds away from the glitz associated with the French capital. Rife with poverty, high unemployment, and grim concrete housing projects, their young residents (many the children of immigrants from North and West Africa) live in a bleak, insular world that is cut off from mainstream French society.

Those who do try to escape these depressed neighborhoods often face discrimination from job recruiters either on the basis of their ethnicity (headshots are obligatory on French resumes) or their address, which is often a dead giveaway as to an applicant's racial background or economic status.

As in impoverished corners of America, there is a climate of mistrust between young ethnic minorities living in the banlieues and police. Spontaneous "stop and searches" during which officers demand to see identity papers are routine, and while no official police brutality statistics exist in France, several troubling incidents have been documented in recent years.

In 2015, for instance, ++a neighbor filmed++ police officers repeatedly striking a woman in the Seine-Saint-Denis region after she reportedly tried to intervene in the violent arrest of her two teenage sons. And back in July,  24-year-old Adama Traoré died under mysterious circumstances while in police custody, setting off pockets of violent protests in the Val d’Oise region north of Paris.

Cops patrolling France’s banlieues have complained of unsafe working conditions, in which they are often targeted by gangs and drug dealers. In October, officers staged nationwide protests after a firebomb thrown at a police car left four cops injured in the suburb of Viry-Chatillon. 

Sopo said that in order to prevent brutal assaults like the one against Theo, police need to tackle issues of prejudice on a department-wide level.  Moreover, seasoned officers with past experience working in "sensitive" neighborhoods should be deployed to Paris's banlieues, instead of rookies who, according to Sopo, "confuse exercising authority with humiliation." 

Police interrogations and arrests also need an overhaul.

"Current arrest and detention techniques are extremely violent in France," said Sopo. "Enough is enough with police officers who think anything goes."

For the time being, all eyes will be on the outcome of the case. A guilty verdict could quell the resentment among residents who have longed believe that justice is not on their side. If the officers are exonerated, however, there are fears that the banlieues could burn once again.

Remembering the late Mathias Matemere

Public viewing1:00 p.m.-5:00 p.m
Friday, February 3, 2017
New Generation Funeral Home
2930 Murfreesboro Pike
Antioch, TN

Visitation with the Family10:00 a.m.-11:00 a.m.
Saturday, February 4, 2017
New Generation Funeral Home
2930 Murfreesboro Pike
Antioch, TN

Celebration of Life11:00 a.m.
Saturday, February 4, 2017
New Generation Funeral Home
2930 Murfreesboro Pike
Antioch, TN

The Service of Committal & Interment
Calvary Cemetery
Nashville, TN

Mr. Mathias Matemere, age 89 of Franklin, transitioned from this earthly life to eternal life on Saturday, January 28, 2017, at Grace Healthcare of Franklin.

He leaves a host of devoted family members and friends to cherish his memories.

The completed obituary will be forthcoming.
Please keep the family of Mr. Mathias Matemere in your thoughts and prayers.

All-In-For Matemere Cancer Fund

My name is Pierre Gasimbo and I am writing on behalf of my siblings and the rest of our family. Though our father is diabetic, he has been healthy overall. Without warning, he took ill two days before Christmas, on Dec 23rd. He has been hospitalized and diagnosed with Stage 4 cancer--Metastatic Squamous Cell Carcinoma. This devastating news has hit our family hard, as it was so sudden. Since being hospitalized, his body is deteriorating rapidly and he is losing much of his weight and strength. He continues to express constant agonizing pain.

The purpose of sharing this is, on behalf our family and siblings, to reach out to all friends and family, near or far, to provide my father the best care that we are able to as we face the possibility of him passing away. We are accepting what the doctors have told us, but we hold our truth that God can work miracles.

Accuracy on Hospice; Our Father was transferred from hospital to a nursing facility that has skill training and Physical therapy. At the time of hospital transfer he was not a qualified candidate for any hospice services but as his body continues to fail him as of January 10 he was discharged from physical therapy making him a candidate for hospice. Applications for hospice were turned on Wednesday, January 11th and can take up two months to get approval and family are taking proactive measures because during the waiting period the family is obligated to cover $250 per day for "room and board"  while his state insurance covers the medications. "Because room and board are not covered by Medicare, it cannot be treated as a “cross-over” item for partial payment by TennCare."  -Policy Office, Bureau of TennCare Section 3. Room and Board.

We would never think in a million years that we would have to use this website for ourselves. We have faith that, with the love of God, your prayers, and your helping hand we will overcome this battle. In the Bible Luke Chapter 12:48, it says: “For of those to whom much is given, much is required.”

A word on who our father is; our father Mathias(Matthew) Nzobonankira Matemere is a God fearing, hard working Christian man, full of life and respected by many. Raised in Kayanza, Burundi, he survived so much of the Burundi-Rwanda genocide turmoil and was forced to live in Tanzania refugee camps. In December 1998, he settled in Nashville, Tennessee. He is an amazing father, a grandfather, great grandfather and a community man. Our father has always worked to serve others and love everyone in his community. His sense of community spirit is what inspired him to serve as a city alderman. Today, he’s a well-respected community man, known to donate much his time to help resolve conflicts during his time as a mediator of many disputes within the local community. Despite everything that has tried to crush his spirit, he has continued to serve the community through his church in Nashville. Despite this sudden illness, if you are blessed to see him at his hospice bedside, you will see he remains strong and steadfast in his faith in God.

Friends, I know that times are tough right after Christmas. If you are able to lend us your support, whether by donating or sharing our story, it will provide our father with a fighting chance that can ease his suffering and allow him to be with his family during his darkest hour. We are eternally grateful for your compassion.

-Gasimbo on behalf of Mister Matemere and his family.

Read more updates here https://www.gofundme.com/allinfor-matemere-cancer-fund?viewupdates=1&rcid=acf062f1340042d9a361b64d91a5c2dd&utm_source=internal&utm_medium=email&utm_content=body_photo&utm_campaign=upd_n

WJC Speech in Rwanda- 1998 - WikiLeaks - The Podesta Emails

Below is President Clinton's speech that he gave in Rwanda in 1998. ... First, let me thank you, Mr. President, and Vice President Kagame, and your wives for .... as you go about your business here, men and women who survived and go on, ... And believe me, after over 5 years of dealing with these problems, I know it is not ...

https://wikileaks.org/podesta-emails/emailid/8396