"Since 2003, Abdi Roble and Doug Rutledge have been documenting the lives of Somali immigrants in the United States and of the people forced into the vast refugee camps that were set up in Kenya in the wake of the 1991 civil war in Somalia. In The Somali Diaspora, Roble, who immigrated to the United States from Somalia in 1989, and Rutledge trace the journey of a family from the Dadaab refugee camp in Kenya, home to more than 150,000 Somalis, to new lives in the United States." "The story of the Somali diaspora as told through Ruble's intimate photographs and Rutledge's insightful essays is extraordinary and inspiring. Together they take readers from civil war in Africa to the culture shock of arriving in the United States, growing roots in the Somali community, learning English, finding work, and - in a remarkably short time - participating fully in American life while sustaining a faith in Islam and a distinct cultural identity."--BOOK JACKET.
The Somali Documentary Project: how it all began -- The Somali diaspora in America -- Dadaab: the dry, hungry place -- From refugee to dependent: the family of Abdisalam -- Columbus, Ohio: preparing for American life -- Minneapolis: participation in the Mogadishu on the Mississippi -- The future : hope for the Somali diaspora.