Somali Youth Diaspora –Call to Action

The word Diaspora, graphically illustrates the extent of our problem and the status of our nationhood.
Practically, the word Diaspora means ex-patriot. Let’s hope this is not desired or permanent title, but rather a temporary one yielded by the circumstances.

Regardless of our age, our generation is defined by a single issue and single case. A few days ago we celebrated the day that marked the 50th year anniversary of Somalia independence: the day we took independence. There is a difference between being independent for 50 years and marking 50 years from the Independence Day. Every generation has a calling and a sacred duty, they must perform, requirements or promises they must fulfill, and a goal they must accomplish. Our sacred duty and responsibility is to bring peace, stability, and the moral norm to our nation. Change the world perception of Somalia and earn our decent place in history.

Do you remember the stories our parents or grandparents recited constantly about where they were on July 1st, 1960? Or how they have celebrated the raise of the Somali flag and the lowering of the British and Italian ones?

Now, as a Somali youth in the Diaspora, you may or may not remember where you were on July 1^st 2010 but the country- our country- Somalia is at crossroad. So to, are the millions who are in our home country today – the dreadful and forlorn or deliciously tasteful memory of that day lingers depending on where or which part of the country they were.

Isn’t the dehumanization in our home today worst than during colonialism?

To the South, the president slept inside a tank that belonged to the foreign forces. More than twenty innocent Somalis died in Mogadishu; there was a brutal fighting that lasted two days.

To the North, the fruit of about seven years of peace was sowed they held an election in which the opposition party won, without intimidation or violence from the retiring president’s force or militia. They celebrated the taste of democracy and marked 50 years of independence with maturity and experience. They became an example to not only their brothers and sisters in the South but to the entire continent. This news put a smile on even the most sentimentalists Southerner.

Somalia’s first 50 years – who did it belong to?

The first half of the century belonged to our parents and their parents but the future belongs to no one.
The superpower nations and those that can’t sustain themselves without foreign aid, the strong and the weak and poor and the filthy rich, everyone will put a toe on a line drawn by the time.

Our grandparents and our parents fought for Somalia’s independence. That was their responsibility, their sacred duty and they succeeded. The colonialist left, and they left to our parents the burden of what they were seeking -Somalia independence – and that of nation building without a road map. They never had any formal training. Our parents left the nation building obligation for the generations after them. Our parents and grandparents had more faith in us, expected more from us because those whom much is given – independence- much is expected.

Today we know our grandparents and our parents lacked some foresight because an action without vision is a nightmare. Fortunately, we Somali Diaspora youth, have a chance to change what our children and our grand children have to say about us.

The Somali youth in the Diaspora have a dichotomy of opinion about how to bring sanity and security back to their homeland. The girls’ version: – “Dose of tonic to the tired testosterone” A genius lady, my close friend said with smirked stare. Her argument is simple, “girls/women are [the] torso to the family structure, empower them and you will stand tall and strong among your peer[s], ignore them and you will confined [in a] stoop[ed] position and even worse crawl all your life time. It’s the time [for] boys/ men to concede failure and retire from the political podium. We possibly may not know better than men but we know men better”, she said still wearing the smirk on her face.

In soliloquy I said, ‘who gave her the right to speak on behalf of the female? As if she was reading my mind she continued “and I hope you know I am speaking on behalf of the majority”. Truly, Women raised men, the poor, the rich, smart, genius and the loser. Women are majority-if democracy is achieved through one person and one vote.

I was offended not by the strength of her argument but the gesture. You know the smirk and wink.

Another lady friend of mind argued; “we are lazy who pretend to be idle. We have aplenty of things to do yet we ignore them. Those little works we ignore pile into heap of obstacle into the future impeding any progress”. I couldn’t agree more because if you don’t repair the little cracks on the wall, there will be a time you will have to build the whole wall.

The men version. The guys were not so bold or brutal of what they thought will work for the country in the next century. North America Somali Student Union (NASSU) president stated, “if there is something called a better tomorrow or future, or some ways to make yourself better a person. The tool to achieve both is education”. Knowledge is power which its, “purpose is to replace an empty mind with an open one” my Dugsi teacher is fond of saying this.

The former Ohio Somali Student Association President pointed out “Unity of purpose is the solution-it’s the difference not the similarity that brings us together. Unity is currency that never deflate, its language spoken by developed world”. Example he gave was the European countries are coming together, Africans are breaking apart.

The experts say the chances of someone winning the lottery are slim and the possibility of one person winning twice or three times in their life time is indeed very impossible. Actually the experts say the possibility of someone winning once during their life time is near impossible and two or more times is “one in septillion chances”. That’s 18 followed by 24 zeroes, mathematically speaking. Texas resident, professor of Math Dr. Joan Ginther hit the jackpot four times winning a sum of 21 million U. S dollars.

The odds that were stacked against this math professor were very impractical but yet she hit the jackpot four times. Her chances were (1 in 18000000000000000000000000) this were the chances of her winning one lottery; here is where the story gets strange, she won four times. Then that makes the odds (1 in 64000000000000000000000000). Despite the odds stacked against her, she tried and won. She continued playing when she won the first time, she won and then she continued playing with hope of winning the third time, she won and still continue playing until she won, hitting the jackpot four times. The possibility of the Dr. Ginther to play four times and won each time she played is not near impossible.

Here is the moral of this lesson. The possibility of the Somali youth in the Diaspora to bring peace and stability back to their motherland is very possible. The odds stacked against them are not near of that stacked against the Dr. Gither , statistically speaking. The odds against us, Somali youth in the Diaspora, are practical and our chances are (1 in 25). I derived this statistical analysis from the number of the Somali parliamentarian today and how many of them left or lived in the abroad.

My friends, the world cares less about what you know or do for yourself. Responsibility is not private. It is more of what you do for others, your willingness and ability to help another define the responsible-ness of the person. History thrust this responsibility upon us. It is our fate. It is our duty.

My fellow Somali youth, our inaction and indifferences are becoming a silent dirge for our dying motherland. We are not only the succession but a succor. Our presence is not subsidiary but supremely required to subjugate the insanity that is occurring in our country.

You are wondering, where should I start?

By end of this month on July 31-Aug 1, two days conference held by Somali youth Diaspora will happen in Virginia. This event is not organized by certain group ruled by a particular individuals and does not lean on advocating issues that concern one group nor do they have any hidden interest, they are Somali youth in the Diaspora. That’s one example, but playing in the forefront in the development and participating in every event that is held in the name of the youth or Somali should merit your presence.

The country was built by the Somali Youth League (SYL). They had their chance in the first half of the century, and a goal to achieve Somali independence- they have achieved that goal. The second half of the century, belongs to us, the Somali youth in the Diaspora. Our goal, our duty and our responsibility are similar yet far apart, to conquer and reclaim our country and rescue her from ignorance, arrogance and mismanagement as well as extinction.

A friend of mine summarized for me what he thought the Somali Youth Diaspora is.
He said that the Somali Youth Diaspora is not a group, club or organization run by certain people, rather it is
a noun. Even better, it is an adjective that describes (y)our present status. We are Somali and we are the youth in Diaspora after all – are we not?

Abdullahi Yusuf

The writer is the President of The Ohio Somali Students Association at the OSU and he contributed this article on behalf of The Ohio Somali students. he can be reached at yusuf.22@osu.edu