| Nebraska
Connects: The New Nebraskans Airs on NETV, NETV2
and NPRN
A taped replay of “Nebraska Connects:
The New Nebraskans” will be broadcast on
Nebraska ETV on Friday, April 9, at 10 p.m. CT
(9 MT), and several times on NETV2, including
Thursday, April 8, at 9 a.m. and 2 p.m. CT (8
& 1 MT); Saturday, April 10, at 10 p.m. CT
(9 MT); and Tuesday, April 13, at 9 p.m. CT (8
MT).
Anyone who loves his neighbor within the limits
of the world is doing no more and no less injustice
than someone who loves himself within the limits
of the world.” -- Franz Kafka
Do you know your neighbor? In the 19th century, Nebraska saw waves of European immigrants settling its landscape. Today’s immigrants to Nebraska often come from a variety of locales, such as Mexico, Iraq, Vietnam and Africa.
“Nebraska Connects: The New Nebraskans,” an hour-long, live panel discussion airing Wednesday, April 7, at 7 p.m. CT (6 MT) on NETV, gives Nebraskans the opportunity to discuss the challenges and opportunities new immigrants offer the state and what individuals and communities can do to assist them.
A panel of experts will discuss attitudes toward new refugees and immigrants and their roles in the communities -- including discussion of myths and common misperceptions. Panel members will include Iraqi refugee Zainab Al-Baaj,
project coordinator for Faces of the Middle East;
Kit Boesch, human services administrator for
Lincoln/Lancaster County and member of the New
Americans Task Force; Dr. Hans Dethlefs, MD,
of OneWorld Community Health Center, Omaha; Oscar
Rios Pohirieth, Lincoln
Public Schools
Latino Liaison and 1990 immigrant from Mexico;
Susan Kash-Brown from Southeast Community College,
assistant director of the English Language Program;
and Holly Burns, executive director of Lincoln
Community Hispanic Center.
A telephone bank of resource persons will take questions and comments for the on-air panel, as well as provide direct response and referrals to callers. Ask your questions by calling 800-676-5446 toll-free across the state or 472-1212 in Lincoln. In addition, you can send questions via e-mail to neconnects@unl.edu.
Interspersed throughout the program will be video
segments introducing viewers to refugees and immigrants
who have recently made Nebraska their new home.
Immigrants and refugees share their thoughts and discuss their experiences of life in Lincoln.
QUICKTIME | REAL PLAYER
LEAVING HOME – Respondents discuss the need to escape religious persecution, war, and political repercussions; seeking education; and opportunities to improve English language ability by living in the US. |
QUICKTIME | REAL PLAYER
A NEW CULTURE – Respondents find that family roles are different, shopping and transportation must be learned, life is much faster, and the weather is sometimes a shock. Human rights are respected in the US. |
QUICKTIME | REAL PLAYER
A NEW HOME – New Nebraskans feel welcome and find that local people have been good to them. There are still many Nebraskans who seem indifferent to the newer residents, but those who have come to the U.S. feel that they are here to stay. If they were to go back to their countries of origin, they believe that many of them would die. |
QUICKTIME | REAL PLAYER
REFUGEES AND IMMIGRANTS– There is a great difference between opportunities provided to refugees who are in the US legally with extended government services to help them get started versus the lack of government resources for immigrants, whether here legally or without legal papers. |
QUICKTIME | REAL PLAYER
GAINING EMPLOYMENT– Consider the differences in moving from mostly agricultural areas to the U.S. which demands the skills for industrialized labor. |
QUICKTIME | REAL PLAYER
HOUSING– Differences in family size with numerous children make it difficult to find affordable rentals. Persons must often wait a long time for subsidized assistance. |
QUICKTIME | REAL PLAYER
HEALTH CARE – Translation is often hard to find in emergency situations. Often, those persons lacking health insurance don’t have the money for routine care and wait until it is “too late” to correct the health problem. |
QUICKTIME | REAL PLAYER
RECOGNIZING EDUCATION – Lacking documentation to pursue education in the US can be a long process before being able to pursue educational goals. |
QUICKTIME | REAL PLAYER
LANGUAGE BARRIER – Learning the English language is considered to be the biggest challenge and of the highest priority. Lack of language makes one feel helpless and fearful. |
QUICKTIME | REAL PLAYER
NEW NEBRASKANS CONTRIBUTIONS – New Nebraskans have may talents that they want to share, while still teaching their own children about their culture, religion, and language. |
|
|
This documentary produced by Nebraska Educational Television for
the Lincoln, Nebraska based New Americans Task Force. Funding provided by The Woods Charitable Fund.
Immediately following “Nebraska Connects: The New Nebraskans” is “My Journey Home,” Wednesday, April 7, at 8 p.m. CT (7 MT). "My Journey Home" is a new public television documentary addressing the issues of prejudice and diversity in America. Through personal stories of buried pasts, mixed heritages, missing fathers and broken dreams, this two-hour special helps to further our understanding of “who is an American?”
Complementing this topic is “The New Americans,” a seven-hour PBS miniseries that follows the journey of new immigrants and refugees as they travel from their homelands of Nigeria, India, the Dominican Republic, the West Bank and Mexico to the United States in search of a better life and the American Dream. The three-part “The New Americans” airs Monday, March 29, through Wednesday, March 31, at 8 p.m. CT (7 MT) on Nebraska ETV.
|
