Mayor Domenic Sarno is the latest mayor to speak out against refugee settlement. The mayor of Springfield, Massachusetts is drawing criticism from those who say that he has a moral obligation to help new immigrants, many of whom are Somali.
Sarno appealed to fellow democrats in a formal letter, according to the International Business Times. In asking to an end to refugee resettlement in his city, the mayor has said that “enough is enough.” He said that you “can’t keep concentrating poverty on top of poverty.”
The Somali families have been living in crowded, pest-infested apartments without proper utilities. The conditions have gotten lot of attention.
"Why not talk about the problems in the city, why not talk about the houses that are unstable and in bad conditions, why only talk about the Somalis and Somali Bantus?" said Mohammed Abdi, 72, through an interpreter, according to the Associated Press.
It is a difficult problem for refugees and city leaders. Springfield is the state’s third largest city. There is a refugee population of about 1,500 refugees in Springfield, 380 of them are Somali.
Residents of Springfield demanded last summer that the U.S. government stop sending refugees.