Brown County has seen a sudden and unexpected surge in the number of Somalis moving into the area this year.

It’s prompting law enforcement to receive a lesson on Somali culture, crimes, and drugs.

“They didn’t know who to talk to, didn’t know the police could be trusted. That’s going to be a tough road for us, but this is a first step,” Captain Bill Bongle said.

After a drug bust last week where officers seized a drug common in Somalia but new to Northeast Wisconsin, this training proves en more important.

Since January the number of Somalis who moved into Brown County has quadrupled.

More than 300 Somalis live here now, they say, because this is a safe area with good schools and housing.

A five-hour drive to the west, America’s largest population of Somalis live in the Twin Cities area — 100,000.

No matter where, with any new group of people moving in, there are cultural differences.

So police agencies across Wisconsin are receiving special training from Minnesota police to learn how to bridge that cultural divide.

Nearly 50 officers from law enforcement agencies around the state are in Green Bay, learning Somali culture from someone who knows it well.

Officer Tracy Henry works for the St. Paul, Minnesota, Police Department, an area home to the largest Somali population in the U.S.

“We’re learning about the Somali culture — what people do, how they interact with other people, and how they interact with law enforcement,” Lieutenant Kevin Warych, Green Bay Police Department, said.

In Somalia, government and police are largely considered corrupt and untrustworthy. That’s already creating a barrier for local officers.

“So the trust is a very difficult issue for them, so it’s something we’re really going to have to work at,” Bongle said.

Green Bay police visited the Somali market and mosque in Green Bay. This training teaches differences in cultures to help them forge important relationships.

“You just have to slowly ease into it, slowly build rapport, slowly build trust. This training is giving officers the knowledge, you know, not to shake a Somali person’s hand, because they might view that as disrespectful,” Warych said.

Since this is for law enforcement, officers receive insight on crimes, including drugs. It’s fresh on their minds after a khat bust last week.

“We are going to be trained on what the effect of khat is, the potency, and how it’s being transported,” Warych said.

But most important, it’s about building relationships that may lead to crime prevention.

“If people are aware of crime or know that somebody’s up to something, the person they’re going to share that with is someone they know and they trust,” Bongle said.
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WBAY

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