Note: This is the first of two reports examining the African immigrant communities in the Twin Cities. Today's report profiles the communities that have established or plan to establish cultural centers in St. Paul. Monday's story focuses on the communities' economic impact.
From a former medical clinic within St. Paul's Bandana Square, members of Minnesota's Cameroonian community organize a Scrabble tournament, lawn tennis and career mentoring programs while debating the fractious politics of their home country.
Some bear physical scars that tell of their political activism in Central Africa.
There's similar energy brewing near Dale Street and University Avenue, where the city's sizable ethnic Oromo community gathers in a converted church for summer cookouts, teen dance shows and college-readiness classes. Members of this community, too, have shed blood and lost loved ones while speaking out for basic rights.
In a one-story storefront a few light-rail stops down the road, the Eritrean community runs a third cultural center dedicated to yet another growing segment of the African immigrant population in St. Paul -- and they also have stories to tell about war, upheaval and progress.
Thousands of African immigrants have landed in Minnesota after fleeing political persecution or civil war in their home countries. Others have been lured by the opportunity to continue their education at the University of Minnesota or accept jobs at major employers such as the Mayo Clinic and IBM.
After decades of their numbers growing, they've pooled money to establish permanent community spaces where they can break bread and celebrate their language, culture and faith. Several are in St. Paul.
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