''The Letter: An American Town and the 'Somali Invasion' '' is a 2003
documentary directed by
Ziad Hamzeh
Ziad (also transliterated as Ziyad, Zyad, Zeyad, or Zijad ar, زياد) is an Arabic given name and surname.
Given name
Actors
* Zeyad Errafae'ie, Syrian television actor and voice actor
Athletes
* Zeyad Abdulrazak, Kuwaiti hurdler
* Zeyad Ma ...
. It was filmed in the town of
Lewiston,
Maine.
Synopsis
In October 2002, former Mayor of Lewiston Laurier T. Raymond wrote an
open letter addressed to leaders of the Somali immigrant community, predicting a negative impact on the city's social services and requesting that they discourage further relocation to the town. The letter angered some persons and prompted various community leaders and residents to speak out against the mayor, drawing national attention. Demonstrations were held in Lewiston, both by those who supported the immigrants' presence and those who opposed it. In January 2003, a small
white supremacist group demonstrated in the city in support of the mayor, prompting a simultaneous counter-demonstration of about 4,000 people at
Bates College and the organization of the "Many and One Coalition".
Reception
The film premiered at the 2003
American Film Institute
The American Film Institute (AFI) is an American nonprofit film organization that educates filmmakers and honors the heritage of the motion picture arts in the United States. AFI is supported by private funding and public membership fees.
Leade ...
film festival and was chosen as The Amnesty 2004 festival opener. It received very positive reviews including an endorsement and high recommendation from the
Southern Poverty Law Center. The film garnered numerous awards and accolades including the Independent Spirit Award from Boston. It continues to be shown across the globe especially nowadays when issues of immigration and refugee resettlement are once again ignited by the various wars around the world.
See also
*
History of Somalis in Maine As of 2013, there were around 10,000 ethnic Somalis in Lewiston and Portland.
History
In the 1990s, thousands of Somali immigrants in the United States began a secondary migration to Maine from other states due to the area's low crime rate, goo ...
References
Letter, The: An American Town and "The Somali Invasion"
External links
*
*
Documentary films about American politics
2003 films
Culture of Lewiston, Maine
Somali-American history
Documentary films about immigration to the United States
2003 documentary films
Films shot in Maine
2000s American films
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