South Portland selects the first Somali-American mayor in U.S.

WASHINGTON - For the first time in history, a Somali-American woman has been elected as a mayor in the United States of America, a significant breakage of barrier to women of color, who have fascinating history from where they were originally born.

Deqa Dhalac, who fled from Mogadishu three decades ago when Somalia was bleeding from the effects of civil war, was on Monday elected as Mayor of Portland, becoming the first woman with an origin in Somalia to hold the seat.

Portland is the fourth largest city in Maine. Her latest accomplishment was the subject of a joyous phone conversation on Sunday with her mother, who still lives in Mogadishu.

Her mother recalled the prayer she recited to Dhalac when her daughter began high school. From now through eternity, her mother said at the time, be a leader in a community of people from all backgrounds, and may the light of your father guide you to a better future. Dhalac had forgotten her mother’s prescriptive words. She was happy to be reminded, Fox News reported.

“It was so beautiful,” Dhalac said before Monday’s ceremony. “It brought tears to my eyes.”

After serving three years as District 5 city councilor, Dhalac was formally elected Monday afternoon by her six fellow councilors to lead them and the city in 2022.

The principal of Deering High School in Portland, Abdullahi Ahmed, who is also a leader of Maine’s Somali community, delivered the opening prayer at the council’s inauguration ceremony. He congratulated Dhalac for demonstrating, despite setbacks that come with prejudice, what the human spirit can accomplish with support from a welcoming city.

“You are here to build on the work that was ongoing,” Ahmed said. “We are so proud of you, Deqa.”

Reza Jalali, executive director of the Greater Portland Immigrant Welcome Center, was among many leaders of Maine’s immigrant community who attended the ceremony at South Portland High School. He is a Kurd who was born in Iran.

“All of us new Mainers take personal pride in this,” Jalali said as he arrived.

The Council on American-Islamic Relations, the nation’s largest Muslim civil rights, and advocacy organization praised Dhalac’s election “as a sign of the increasing civic involvement of the American Muslim community,” spokesperson Ibrahim Hooper said. “We hope Mayor Dhalac will help inspire a new generation of American Muslims as they take an increasing role in building a better society.”

In becoming mayor, Dhalac takes on the additional duties of running council meetings and spearheading citywide initiatives for the same $3,000 annual stipend that each councilor receives. A longtime social justice and human rights advocate, she works for the Maine Department of Education as its family engagement and cultural responsiveness specialist.

Dhalac, 53, has traveled through many countries and navigated a wide variety of cultures, jobs, and challenges to get where she is today.

She grew up in a middle-class family, a middle child with two brothers. Her father was a former petroleum engineer who lost his job because he was a vocal supporter of Somalia’s fight for independence from colonial rule in the 1960s. He became an independent contractor who worked with nongovernmental agencies and made education a priority at home.

“My father really introduced us to the world,” Dhalac said, “in reading books and telling us stories about the world and making sure that we were not stuck only in what’s happening in our country, in Somalia, but also telling us there’s a broader world out there. We were really groomed to understand how politics works, how our country was oppressed.”

When her father died in 1989, he knew Somalia was heading for a catastrophic political breakdown, which continues today. He urged family members to make sure his beloved daughter left the country before her life was in danger.

“Girls are seen as the honor of the family in Somalia,” Dhalac said. “My father was a strong believer in girls’ education and empowerment. I think he was a feminist in his own way.”

Her achievements come years after Ilhan Omar, her compatriot, was elected as the first Muslim woman to Congress. Ms. Omar, who is serving her second term as representative for Minnesota 5th District, has been vocal on matters of refugees and human rights throughout her career.

A number of Somalis in the diaspora have broken barriers to enter active politics in foreign countries. Currently, Ahmed Hussein is a minister in the government of Canada, where he has served for a couple of years now.

GAROWE ONLINE