ADVOCATES
“It was a long time coming to get the commission off the ground,” said Rosaire Ifedi, the commission’s chairwoman. “We’ve moved on from that, and we’re grateful Gov. Kasich found it a worthy thing to do.”
Ifedi doesn’t know the cause of the nearly decadelong delay, but she thinks it might have been related to a lack of qualified people to serve on the 11-member board. All must be U.S. citizens of African origin.
The commission isn’t the only of its kind in Ohio, and a spokesman from Gov. Mike Dewine’s office said the governor thinks input from diverse groups such as the state’s growing immigrant community is valuable. There also is a statewide Asian-american Pacific Islander Advisory Council, Commission on Hispanic-latino Affairs, New Americans Advisory Committee and the Commission on Minority Health.
Challenges facing the large African-born population in the state include integrating into American culture and becoming self-sufficient, Ifedi said. Possible solutions include helping immigrants learn English, get access to education and health care or connect with transportation, legal services and other needed resources.
Despite finally being formed, the commission still doesn’t have funding and can’t accept grants until lawmakers establish a fund for the group, Ifedi said. Last year, state Rep. Bernadine Kennedy Kent, a Columbus Democrat, introduced a bill to set up funding for the group. Though the bill got through committee, it wasn’t passed before the legislative session ended. Officials say there are plans to try to get it passed this year.
In addition to highlighting the needs of the community, the commission hopes to show its accomplishments. Forty-one percent of the state’s foreign-born black population, for instance, has higher-education degrees, compared with 28 percent of the general U.S. population, according to the commission’s report. Africans in Ohio also become citizens at a faster rate — 54.4 percent vs. 49.3 percent for the overall immigrant population in the country.
Lisa Bannerman, 50, who is originally from Ghana, is the chef and manager at Drelyse African Restaurant on the Northeast Side. She thinks the commission is a great idea.
“It’s about time for us to be recognized in Columbus,” Bannerman said. “It’s not just one group. It’s all Africans because we are all from the continent.”
Immigrants need help when they try to open a business, she said, and she hopes the commission can help them get the tools they need. Bannerman also hopes the commission will improve the availability of translation services in health care.
“We are a part of this community as well,” she said.
One way the commission plans to help African immigrants in Ohio is to connect them with organizations that already exist, many of which were created to serve specific populations.
Liberians in Columbus Inc., for example, was formed in 1986 to offer fellowship and social services to local Liberians, many of whom fled war and civil strife in their country. Alpha Tongor, the group’s president, said the number of Liberians living in central Ohio continues to grow and now totals about 6,000, with many moving to Columbus from other parts of the country.
Tongor hopes his organization can get help from the commission when it comes to finding state resources and perhaps funding to build a community center where Liberians can gather, get resources and attend programs.
“We’ve consistently been bombarded by issues we know there are resources within the state to provide,” he said.
Ifedi hopes to bring all African immigrant groups together in the state and host seminars, events and workshops. The commission began its work this past year with a listening tour to get word out that the commission exists and to find out what the state’s immigrants want from the group.
“The commission can never do all the work on the ground, but we can see what’s needed and connect people,” she said.