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NH lacks formal citizenship classes, leaving the job up to volunteers

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NH lacks formal citizenship classes, leaving the job up to volunteers


With two maps of the USA, a flag within the nook and photographs of previous U.S. presidents pinned to a foldout whiteboard, an workplace at Overcomers Refugee Companies resembles that of a highschool historical past classroom. As a substitute of highschool youngsters, Eileen Kane – outfitted with a 3 ring binder of spelling phrases, dates and questions – teaches New Individuals, who finding out for his or her citizenship take a look at.

Because the inhabitants of New Individuals continues to develop within the Harmony space, residents like Kayitani Ndutiye, who moved to New Hampshire from the Congo in 2012, are wanting to cement the USA as their new dwelling. Usually, the 100 query naturalization take a look at, with questions of historical past and geography, stand of their means.

To not point out that for many of those immigrants, English just isn’t their first language. But, there are not any formal citizenship courses within the space with paid, full-time employees members, which leaves the job as much as volunteer lecturers who put on a number of hats in pursuit of serving to New Individuals move the take a look at.

Learning for the take a look at

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From kindergarten to Grade 12, college students throughout New Hampshire begin faculty with their A,B,C’s and sometimes take a United States historical past course in highschool – stuffed with particulars about our three branches of presidency, the Invoice of Rights, historic elections and pivotal durations for the nation.

It’s exhausting to condense what a scholar would possibly be taught in over a decade of faculty in these historical past courses, not to mention fundamental studying and spelling expertise, into just some months.

However throughout 13 lesson plans, that’s what Kane does for her citizenship college students.

If a scholar is proficient in English, they’re placed on observe to do a lesson per week to move the take a look at. Usually, it’s two or three weeks per lesson – with English classes sprinkled into explanations of colonialism and the Federalist Papers.

When Ndutiye first started working with Kane in August, every lesson began with a evaluation of the fundamentals.

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“Have you learnt the best way to spell United States?” she’d ask, elongating the sound of every letter to piece collectively U-N-I-T-E-D.

Now, he’s on the eighth installment of Kane’s lesson plans. He’s fast to reply who the governor of New Hampshire is (Chris Sununu) and is aware of which Founding Father wrote the Declaration of Independence (Thomas Jefferson).

However these intricate lesson plans and centuries of condensed historical past spotlight how advanced the naturalization course of is for aspiring residents, particularly when they’re nonetheless studying English.

“For them to take the take a look at, 100 questions on civics. These are individuals who by no means went to high school. And America is aware of that each one the people who they carry right here to the U.S. didn’t have an opportunity to go to high school,” mentioned Clement Kigugu, the manager director of Overcomers. “So how will you count on them to be taught English and be capable to reply to 100 questions?”

To not point out that some questions, like “Who’s the Speaker of the Home?” have already got new solutions. Neglect the truth that Ndutiye simply discovered a few lady named Nancy Pelosi. Now, he’ll need to reply Kevin McCarthy.

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Previously decade, Ndutiye has already taken the citizenship take a look at twice.

Now with Kane’s assist, he has flash playing cards and lesson plans – and a weekly dedication to working towards his English and simulating questions that is likely to be on the take a look at. However with no formal citizenship class for New Individuals within the space, apart from the dedication of volunteers like Kane, many of those sources aren’t obtainable to everybody who wants them.

Demand, however no formal providers

From 2010 to 2021, there have been 1,187 New Individuals who settled in Harmony, greater than anyplace else within the state, in accordance with the N.H. Division of Well being and Human Companies.

With the assistance of Ascentria Care Alliance, a resettlement company within the space, 1000’s people have relocated to New Hampshire since 1997. The company locations New Individuals in Harmony, Laconia and Nashua, providing employment and housing help, English courses and one-on-one assist from volunteers.

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The Overcomers Refugee Companies, a Harmony nonprofit, additionally has an identical mission – to assist New Individuals as they construct a life in New Hampshire.

When many New Individuals arrive in New Hampshire, they wish to make a everlasting dwelling for themselves, mentioned Kigugu. He needed to do the identical factor when he got here to the USA from Rwanda in 2006.

For a lot of, changing into citizen is a monumental course of – one by which they develop into legally accepted by their new dwelling, but additionally granted rights that few New Individuals had prior, particularly if their path to the USA concerned refugee camps or war-torn international locations. After 5 years, these over the age of 18 can apply for the naturalization course of.

But when looking for a citizenship preparation class close to Harmony on the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Companies web site, the closest result’s the Better Lawrence Neighborhood Motion Council, Inc., 40 miles away, in Massachusetts.

To Kigugu’s data, within the Harmony-area there is no such thing as a full-time program that helps citizenship class preparation with paid staff. As a substitute, New Individuals are depending on the assistance of volunteers, who run these courses on their very own schedule.

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When a New American contacts Overcomers about finding out for the naturalization take a look at, Kigugu tries to match them with a volunteer trainer. However typically various ranges of English imply these courses work higher one on one – and require piecing collectively a scheduling puzzle of availability in opposition to work hours and childcare tasks.

“The exhausting half is, now we have to match them. So typically the volunteer has time throughout the day when the consumer works,” he mentioned.

Kane, who’s a retired occupational therapist, just lately started volunteering with take a look at preparation courses. To determine the place to start out with the take a look at, she purchased workbooks, finding out them to resolve how she would manage the fabric herself.

“I appeared via them and mentioned ‘how do they educate? What do they educate?’ after which I made my very own classes,” she mentioned. “I began from scratch.”

When Ndutiye first started finding out with Kane at Overcomers, he hoped he and his spouse might put together for the naturalization take a look at collectively. On day one, they sat collectively within the workplace as Kane defined why the flag had 13 stripes and 50 stars, asking them to repeat what every of those numbers symbolized.

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Whereas Kane might assist fill within the gaps for Ndutiye by translating phrases to Swahili to be taught the fabric, his spouse wanted to start out with fundamental English courses.

This meant Ndutiye has studied one-on-one with Kane most weeks over the previous couple of months.

As he waits for his naturalization take a look at, Adam Hassan, who’s from Sudan however arrived in New Hampshire by the use of Egypt, has joined in on Ndutiye’s classes. Hassan will evaluation whereas Ndutiye works via the lesson plans. One after the opposite, they’ll take turns answering Kane’s revolving questions – Identify one factor Martin Luther King Jr. is known for (the Civil Rights Motion); What warfare was Eisenhower a basic in (World Conflict II); What number of Amendments are there within the U.S. Structure (27).

If Overcomers had an worker liable for take a look at preparation, Kigugu envisions that particular person working each a morning and night shift, round different work schedules. Or the group would supply Saturday courses for extra flexibility.

“If we had a paid individual, the individual might be obtainable all week and canopy the wants of everybody,” he mentioned.

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However for now he’s solely capable of assist the variety of folks Kane can tackle in her schedule. If somebody passes, or has to cancel, that’s a brand new spot for an additional scholar. Nonetheless, demand exceeds what Overcomers is ready to at the moment accommodate.

When the courses produce a profitable consequence and a scholar turns into a citizen, it’s a second to rejoice for everybody concerned.

Kigugu remembers in 2016, he accompanied an aged man who just lately earned his citizenship to vote within the Presidential election. The emotion, of watching this man vote for the primary time was emblematic of a bigger message past candidates on a poll.

“Now I belong to this nation. Now I’m a citizen of a rustic, after being in a refugee camp fro 20 years, with out having the appropriate to vote,” mentioned Kigugu.

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New Hampshire

Gov. Kelly Ayotte: New Hampshire won’t go backward on mental health

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New Hampshire

Protestors station ‘genital observation police’ outside N.H. State House restrooms as lawmakers OK bathroom bill – The Boston Globe

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Protestors station ‘genital observation police’ outside N.H. State House restrooms as lawmakers OK bathroom bill – The Boston Globe


CONCORD, N.H. — When lawmakers reported to the New Hampshire State House on Thursday morning, those who hoped to freshen up before the legislative session began were met with an unusual sight at the restroom doors: guards standing sentry.

These guards weren’t there on official business. They had no authority, and they didn’t block anyone from entering. But each self-appointed bathroom bouncer wore a paper badge that said “genital observation police” — a cheeky way of expressing opposition to legislation they said would undermine privacy and invite discrimination against transgender, intersex, and gender-nonconforming people.

“Sometimes we are serious and we try to talk to our legislators,” said Nancy Brennan, as she stood guard outside the second-floor men’s room. “And sometimes we find a little bit of snark and humor can get the attention.”

To drive their point home, the protestors distributed small cards telling people they would need to allow a GOP lawmaker to inspect their private parts before they could use the restrooms, which are located just a few steps from each legislative chamber. Some passersby scoffed at the demonstration as immature, while others chuckled.

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Brennan, who is affiliated with the Kent Street Coalition, a progressive political advocacy group in New Hampshire, said she came up with the badge idea to criticize both House Bill 148 — a Republican-backed bill that would add exceptions to the gender identity protections that currently exist in New Hampshire law — and those who support such legislation.

“A lot of these legislators are using this for points,” she said. “They don’t want to talk transgender people. They don’t want to understand where they’re coming from. They demonize them. And they demonize those of us who support them.”

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Tiffany Blessing-Gagnon, a protestor, distributes “genital inspection” cards outside the second-floor women’s restroom at the New Hampshire State House on Thursday.Steven Porter/Globe Staff

While opponents of HB 148 say it will place transgender people and others at risk, proponents say they aim to protect women and girls. The legislation would identify certain situations as appropriate for classifying people on the basis of biological sex, rather than gender identity. Those situations include jails and other detention facilities; athletic or sporting events in which males are generally recognized as enjoying a physical advantage; locker rooms and multi-person bathrooms.

The legislation would allow, but not require, public and private entities statewide to separate such facilities and events by sex rather than gender.

Kamren Munz, a trans nonbinary person who has been using the men’s room for the past five years, said they have faced restroom-related discrimination, including being told to leave a facility based on perceptions of their gender, and HB 148 would make matters worse.

“It’s encouraging the general public to basically ask very invasive questions,” they said.

Munz — a former public school teacher who left the profession after drawing scrutiny from New Hampshire’s socially conservative education commissioner — was among the protesters who gathered Thursday morning at the urging of 603 Equality, an LGBTQ+ advocacy group. While Munz stood outside the second-floor women’s room, fellow demonstrators lined the halls and sang about their opposition to the legislation.

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Despite the protest, HB 148 was approved in a party-line vote later Thursday by the Republicans who hold a supermajority in the 24-member New Hampshire Senate. The measure had already passed the 400-member House in March with approval from 198 Republicans, two Democrats, and one independent.

During debate, Republican Senator William M. Gannon said his support for the legislation was based partly on his daughter’s experience competing on an athletic field against a transgender opponent who was much taller and stronger than her. Gannon also said single-sex detention facilities are important for the safety of those detained.

Republican Senator Regina M. Birdsell said lawmakers need to protect privacy and the fairness of athletic competition for women and girls, who face blowback if they speak out about their discomfort when transgender people are allowed in single-sex spaces.

“Women are being marginalized in this environment,” she said, “and as far as I’m concerned, this has to stop.”

In a social media post, Republican Representative Lisa Mazur of said the badge-wearing protesters were “fighting against everything women have fought so hard for over the years.”

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This legislation is very similar to a bill that Republican former governor Christopher T. Sununu vetoed last year, when he signed into law a separate bill that bars transgender girls from girls’ school sports. (The constitutionality of that sports law is being disputed in a pending federal lawsuit.)

Sununu had signed legislation in 2018 and 2019 to add gender identity to the state’s nondiscrimination law and apply those protections to school settings. He said some of the carve-outs that lawmakers wanted to add in 2024 tried “to solve problems that have not presented themselves in New Hampshire.” The legislation would invite “unnecessary discord,” he said.

It’s not yet clear whether Republican Governor Kelly A. Ayotte, who took office in January, will sign HB 148 into law.


Steven Porter can be reached at steven.porter@globe.com. Follow him @reporterporter.

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