New Omaha academy serves Myanmar's refugees

In the basement of a church last week, an Omaha man stared into the distance as he described his years in a Thailand refugee camp.

Life, said Karen refugee Ner Clay, was a day-to-day existence.

“It's not until you have children that you look to the future and see no hope,” he said.

The chance for those children to live safe and free with countless opportunities is what motivated so many refugees from Myanmar — formerly known as Burma — to immigrate to Omaha, Clay said. He estimated that 5,000 Karen and Karenni refugees, two ethnic groups within Myanmar, live in Omaha.

But Clay now has fears for the refugee children living in Omaha, some of whom he sees beginning to lose their way, so he reached out to local authorities for help.

“I want to see them all prosper, have a good life and be a good citizen,” Clay said.

As Omaha and other cities have experienced, a combination of loneliness, cultural differences and unsupervised free time has led some refugee teens to gangs.

In the first effort of its kind in the city, the Omaha Police Department last week spearheaded a program to reach Karen and Karenni teens — and their parents — before they get caught up in the justice system.

“They're displaying some typical warning signs, but because of cultural and language barriers, we can't address it traditionally,” said Lt. Shayna Ray, head of the Omaha Police Department's gang unit.

The police department worked with Omaha Public Schools, several community groups and agencies to create a five-day academy geared toward the Karen and Karenni refugees' needs.

Omaha police hold citizen academies and community education training sessions throughout the year. It's an opportunity for officers to educate the public while building trust and creating relationships.

The southeast Omaha precinct completed a five-week course in May for Sudanese and Somali residents.

There also are programs specific to Latinos and high school students.

But last week's academy differed in the outpouring of community support — more than $4,000 in donations or donated services — and in the emphasis on positive interactions with police.

One of the organizers, Kimberly Thomas, the Douglas County site coordinator for the Juvenile Detention Alternative Initiative, said one of the goals was to make the refugee teens and their families feel “more embraced in the community.”

Clay lived most of his life in a refugee camp in Thailand near the border of Myanmar. He immigrated to Omaha four years ago and has served as an associate pastor at the Karen Christian Revival Church, home to a congregation of about 500 other Karen refugees.

“In refugee camps, there is a lot of time to do nothing,” Clay said, which allowed parents and extended family members to keep a close eye on their children.

In Omaha, many refugee parents are at work while their children are at home, Clay said, and some of those children may be taking unhealthy cues from television, music, the Internet and friends.

Thomas said parents often don't know what could be dangerous behavior, and the teenagers don't comprehend that tangling with law enforcement in the United States can have far-reaching effects.

Clay said many of the teens were born in refugee camps, where authorities were easily bribed — which meant few consequences for wrongdoers.

Bruce Ferrell, vice president of the Midwest Gang Investigators Association, said streets gangs are often new concepts to refugee communities.

“But because they're the new kids on the block, they're open to gang influence, bullying or conflict with youth or adults,” he said. “Some will see how street gangs operate, see they offer protection, and will adopt some of the culture.”

Ray said the Karen and Karenni youths don't appear to be involved in gangs, but they are susceptible.

Some teens have disengaged from their tight-knit community, she said, and appear to be mimicking the clothing style of gang members.

“We want to make sure they know what actions can be negative and then provide positive outlets,” she said.

Omaha police officers knocked on nearly 30 doors to invite at-risk teens and those who have expressed an interest in becoming police officers.

Entire families arrived the first night for dinner and educational sessions. OPS provided transportation and translators for the five-day academy, while other community sponsors covered food, drinks and other needed items.

Wednesday through Friday was just for the teens.

Their sessions at the northeast police precinct addressed bullying, gangs, drugs and underage drinking.

There were presentations from community groups and after-school organizations.

The program wrapped up Saturday with a barbecue and awards ceremony for the participants and their families. The final event was deliberately scheduled to precede a Karen Society soccer league game. Ray said academy participants and organizers could attend the match together, furthering positive interactions between authority and community members.

“We want to see them become more comfortable contacting police and asking for help,” she said.

Contact the writer:
402-444-3131, sam.womack@owh.com