In Edmonton, Somali Canadian National Week is a diverse and elaborate event, packed to the brim with a soccer tournament, celebration for high school graduates and guest speakers with advice on how to integrate into the community.

Events began to run in cities across the country on Friday, and will continuee until July 1, both Canada Day and Somalia’s Independence Day.

In Edmonton, most will take place at the Africa Centre, 13160 127 St..

“Some (participants) will learn parenting skills. Others will learn leadership skills. Others will learn how to be someone who contributes to the community,” said co-organizer Mohamed Abdi, who is also a spokesman for the Somali-Canadian Cultural Society.

The events are not just for Somali-Canadians. Other communities are also invited to come learn about Somali culture.

It’s an opportunity to showcase the best of the local Somali community — which has been marred by a rash of homicides involving its young men in recent years — and offer chances to brain storm solutions.

Somali-Canadian high school graduates will also be recognized at a special ceremony.

“It’s quite significant for us,” Abdi explained. “It is part of our mandate to pull the community together and encourage them to succeed … To tell them, ‘We are not forgetting you. We are aware of your success and achievement.’”

A group of organizers spent around three months organizing the annual event, including choosing several keynote speakers from Edmonton, Minnesota and Indiana.

On top of other lofty goals, the group hopes to expose the children of Somali immigrants to their own culture.

“Children born here might know little of their heritage,” Abdi said. “It’s another way of installing that into the minds of youngsters and tell them to connect with their roots and, at the same time, be part of the country where they live. That makes a strong individual.”

Events will run from 11 a.m. until 9 p.m. at the Africa Centre, culminating in a barbecue on July 1 at Grand Trunk Park.

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Edmonton Sun

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