LEWISTON, Maine — Three One Cafe, a popular Lisbon Street restaurant, is closing March 31 because owner Mahamed Mahamud faces deportation, he said.
Mahamud said he was never granted asylum, and closing the business he opened in 2008 at 259 Lisbon St. will allow him time to make plans to take his family back to Somalia.
He and his wife, Shukri Ali, have three children, ages 14, 8 and 4. The two younger children were born here and are U.S. citizens. The oldest child and the parents are not.
Mahamud and his family came to Lewiston in 2002. In 2003, a judge denied them asylum, he said, which meant he could not get a green card to work toward citizenship. The judge did grant a temporary work permit or visa, Mahamud said. He has renewed the work permit a number of times, but he is now being told he must leave, he said.
“I’m not complaining about his decision; he’s a judge,” Mahamud said.
He is not a refugee, which is a legally protected status, said Arian Giantris, director of Catholic Charities of Maine Refugee and Immigration Services.
“Asylum-seekers are different from refugees,” Giantris said. “They, too, might be fleeing persecution or war,” but they came here undocumented or illegally. Once they are here, many ask for protection to stay.
Mahamud said he doesn’t know when he’ll leave for Somalia; first, he must close the cafe. Friends have urged him to seek help.
“I don’t want to do that,” he said. “Everyone has problems. It’s my problem; I’m going to solve it myself.”
He said he feels shame when he tells people he’s going to close the cafe, and is telling customers when they come in. He has to close, Mahamud said, because he doesn’t want to serve customers while distracted. “It takes time to think, to plan,” he said. Closing would be better to “respect my customers. I’ll be free on the inside.”
Michelle Vazquez Jacobus, a professor at the University of Southern Maine’s Lewiston-Auburn College who has eaten at Three One Cafe, said she was sad to hear of the closing, “especially one that contributes to increasing diversity,” Jacobus said.
Lewiston Mayor Bob Macdonald said he’s “very sorry to hear he’s closing. I really like the guy. I like the food.”
The cafe is popular at City Hall. “People love it,” MacDonald said.
The cafe serves Somali food, including muufa, a kind of flat bread, and the popular dish sambusa. Somali food is meat-based, avoids pork and often offers rice instead of potatoes. The cafe serves breakfast, lunch and dinner.
Mahamud said it is more like a meeting place than a restaurant. In his heart he doesn’t consider himself the owner; it belongs to the community, he said.
The cafe isn’t profitable. His wife works there and as an interpreter. Things like profits, a 401(k) pension fund or Social Security are “not my dream,” he said. “My dream is what I have today.”
Mahamud said he has served a lot of people, and he doesn’t care what color their skin is. Patrons include many Somali immigrants and longtime natives, “lawyers, police officers, both mayors,” he said.
Asked about taking his family to Somalia, a war-torn country in eastern Africa that last year suffered a severe famine, Mahamud said he’s not afraid.
“Life is not scary,” he said. In Somali, “we lost everything we had, land, mother, sister, brother, uncle, aunts.” Some regions of the country have improved, he said. “I can try my best.”
Mahamud said he doesn’t want to be deported from this country only to become a refugee somewhere else, starting over again. “I don’t want to go to another people, another language, another culture,” he said.
His wife said she supports the decision to go to Somalia. “I am not afraid,” she said. “I try to focus, to stay positive.”
When they came to Lewiston 10 years ago, “I didn’t know what was going to happen,” she said. “We made it.”
The couple said they’re thankful to have lived in Lewiston where they survived, were safe and their children went to school. “The time has come to share what they have and to understand,” Mahamud said.
A cook since he was young, Mahamud has worked at the Harraseeket Inn in Freeport, St. Mary’s Regional Medical Center in Lewiston and for Marois in Lewiston before that restaurant closed, he said.
Many pictures and sayings adorn the walls of Three One Cafe. One saying reads, “Life brings us down, but we choose whether or not to get back up.”
tear jerker. but bye
This story is just that a story. He wants to go back to Somalia, he said it a few times. I think he is nuts, just my opinion. He has two US citizen children, so if he pettitioned the Government his family would never be deported. This is a story to make people think we need comprehensive immigration reform.
It is 730am right now on a weekday,i am about to leave for work. There are 4,168 welfare recipients in Skowhegan that will not be getting up til about 11am,noontime today. Two of the welfare residences in my neighborhood had parties last night, which may explain the vandalism spree in Skowhegan last night that has not made the news yet.
How about taking one or more of the welfare recipients and deporting them out of the country and letting Mahamed Mahamud WHO WORKS stay.
Well said. I am off today, so I can post all I want, but I never sit around and do nothing all day. And, I do not have parties during the week.
You Said a Mouthful my friend… I Agree!!! and by the way I say LET HIM AND HIS FAMLY STAY HERE!!!!! This is NOT ! right…Hes not a burden , hes an asset….BE REAL HERE!!!
How do you know he’s an asset? He’s not making a profit after being here HOW MANY YEARS? That means only two things–either he’s really lousy at running a business, or he is hiding profits. NO ONE can be in business for eight years losing money. ALSO, how do you know he doesn’t receive financial assistance, since his cafe does not make money. Remember, under Baldacci, it was ILLEGAL to ask the resident status of anyone seeking financial assistance. This article is PURE liberal fluff.
1. “How do you know he’s an asset? He’s not making a profit after being here HOW MANY YEARS?”:
You’re assuming that by “the business is not profitable” he meant that “the business runs below the break even point”. You are probably wrong seeing how popular the cafe was. I’m willing to bet he just meant that it isn’t HIGHLY profitable.
2. “No one can be in business for eight years losing money”:
First off, he opened the business in 2008. That was 4 years ago. Secondly, businesses operate at a loss all the time, and doing so for four years is not unheard of. Of course, it depends on the size of the annual loss, the amount of tax breaks they get, the owner’s creditworthiness, personal finances, prospects for increased revenue, etc. And a business can stay open indefinitely if it is operating at the break even point.
3. “How do you know he doesn’t receive financial assistance, since his cafe does not make money?”:
Very, very few business owners would ever be eligible for welfare even if their businesses were losing money because they have too many assets (their businesses). Plus, at this point it is clear that you really don’t understand what is meant by the word “profit”. Profit is the amount of money a business takes in minus operating expenses. The salaries that the owners of “sole proprietorship” businesses pay themselves is considered an operating expense. Thus, the business can make zero profit or operate at a loss and the owner can still be drawing a good salary. You are probably confusing this with what happens with many partnerships, LLCs, and corporations- the owners of these entities often get paid a fixed percentage of the profits as stated in the partnership agreement, corporate charter, etc. I don’t know this for sure, but I’d be willing to bet that the cafe isn’t a partnership or a LLC. And it certainly isn’t a corporation.
4. You’re entitled to your (racist and xenophobic) opinion, but I felt that I needed to point out that your opinion has no factual basis.
You are correct that the cafe didn’t open until 2008. So how did this family survive prior that? I say, they had financial assistance from the taxpayers of Maine.
I am certainly not racist and not xenophobic. Just because I disagree with you or any poster that feels, based on this very incomplete article, this guy is somehow an asset and not a drain on the taxpayers of Maine. I couldn’t give a hoot if this guy was white running an Irish pub without making a profit for four years. My position would be the same.
My point is still valid. I will add that the US doesn’t deport people who are here validly. There is much more to the story, but to add those negative points would detract from the pointedly liberal touchy-feely nature of this liberal piece of fluff.
Let’s be clear about this: It’s a Liberal piece of fluff because it presents a story challenging preconceptions you had about people like Mahamed Mahamud.
You apparently think my comments reflect some sort of racial bias against Mahamud. Nothing could be further from the truth. I again state my objection to this piece of fluff mascarading as reporting. If the reporter had thoroughly investigated this issue, we would know the answers to my questions. Until we have the answers, I will present my argument that there is NO WAY this man could run his business at a loss for four years and support his family without receiving some sort of public assistance. Yes, I owned a business. Ask any accountant how long you can report losses on your income tax before the IRS does an audit to find out if you are hiding cash.
Hey xxskier, I don’t know if your comments reflect some sort of racial bias. I was careful to not say that in my reply to you.
However, there are a lot of bogus ideas people have about immigrants. You’re not stupid. You know this and you know what they are.
This story specifically challenges ideas small-minded, ignorant people have about immigrants. Not only did Mahamed Mahamud start up a popular business, when the basic routes to naturalization were sadly closed to him, he accepted it and even has shown respect as per the article for the rules — not a lot of ME people seem willing to show that.
That’s what I meant.
3-5 years. IRS will audit, and the audit itself doesn’t prove anything wrong.
Exactly my point, JEFC. If this article is intended to , as you say, challenge the idea that “small minded ignorant people” have about immigrants–(and I assume here you mean the assumption that immigrants come here and enter the welfare roles)–this article did NOTHING to address that “bias” in a meaningful way. Instead, it presented a man with numerous children with a business that failed to make a profit in 4 years, and we are supposed to believe he never took assistance from the taxpayer?
My objection is to this piece of liberal fluff posing as what you claim it to be.
This is reporting at its liberal-propagandizing worst.
I’m sorry. I’ve got no problem intelligently and with a critical mind discussing this, but to be honest with you I give up. Some people have biases so deeply rooted that even when their preconceptions (especially about people) are challenged by reality they continue to stick fast to prejudicial judgements. You, not me, have proved you’re one of those people. Well done, you get a gold star. You are incorrigible.
And how typically bleeding heart liberal to attack those who strive to ensure that taxpayer dollars are appropriately used as bigoted, ignorant racists.
You are who you choose to be.
Oh, and as a tax payer I don’t need you looking after my dollars. Thanks.
Not looking after “your” or “mine.” You choose to do nothing, that’s fine, that’s your choice. I don’t attack you for doing nothing, although you CERTAINLY attack me for paying attention to how the government tries to spend the public fisc. Glad to hear that you will do nothing and choose to be inactive. I assure you, those of us who are tired of the liberal expenditure of the public money will not be so complacent.
I’d prefer unbiased and less ignorant people working on these matters. That doesn’t mean I don’t want people watching, it does mean I don’t think you’re the one to do it for my priorities.
But I suppose it’s good you’re at least engaged. You do need to work on some of your ignorant beliefs, though. Good luck.
You don’t own a business, do you?
No matter how much one dislikes their behavior, for obvious reasons expelling citizens is something this republic has never done and we’d better hope never will try to do. If that point ever gets reached we’ve hit bottom, pure and simple.
WRONG WRONG WRONG!!!
From the 1920’s through the 1940’s municipal, State and Federal authorities expelled over one million US citizens of Mexican ancestry. They did NOTHING to deserve this, and the only quality that singled them out was the race of their parents.
As well as the hideous Japanese internment and racism of the same period.
Hideous well maybe by today’s standards.
The part of the story that is never told is that after Pearl Harbor, this country was terrified of anything Japanese. Californians were arming themselves, and several Japanese/U.S. citizens had been brutally murdered. The whole west coast was a tinderbox just waiting for an incident. The internment was as much to protect Japanese as it was to get them out of white communities.
True enough.The fact remains that many of them were badly treated with the complicity of the govt. and many other private citizens.It is worth noting that the hysteria was fanned because of the belief that the Japanese could get there but not to the rest of the US.
They tried to do it with the Chinese in the 1880s. That is how the policy of jus de sangre and jus de soli citizenship for those born in America or to American Citizens came into being.
There’s a process for immigrating to this country, let him do so. He certainly seems to be the type we would welcome.
Huh. The Democrats aren’t making anyone ELSE follow procedures to immigrate; judging by Obama’s position on the issue, if you can get your butt across the border, you are safe.
I agree. That may be Obama’s position but its not the legal position. I think if this guy wanted to stay, he should have begun the process so that he wouldn’t have to be deported.
How about taking one or more of the welfare recipients and letting
them run the cafe and continue deporting illegal aliens…
I’m with that idea !
Won’t work, too much like a real job.
This guy is here legally, he is not an illegal alien. His work visa is running out and they will not renew it anymore, meaning the USCIS wont renew it.
He sounds like a nice, hardworking man. What a shame to send a productive person away. I hope there are people in our state that can help him to stay. He is not an immigrant that I support being deported.
Seems stupid that we’re deporting someone that has a positive attitude and wants to work. Meanwhile, thousands of others that are here merely to mooch get to stay. Disappointing is an understatement.
We are not deporting him!!!!! He is a self deport. We do not deport US Citizens, his kids are US Citizens. If he goes to court, he WILL get a green card. He said in the article that he WANTS to return to Somalia.
He’s leaving “voluntarily” because he’s told he must leave per the article above. I agree with others. This isn’t right. Here is someone who has proven himself as an asset to his community. I hope this gets picked-up by national news outlets and results in an outcry that allows him and his family to stay.
No, he arrived here illegally. As he himself says, “the law is the law.” If we start picking and choosing who must follow the law we are done as a Nation.
No, no, and no. An asylum seeker is not “illegal”, they are going through a legal process in which the receiving country evaluates their application for asylum. He had legal work permits to be here in the meantime. Apparently, his claim for asylum has been denied, hence his statement, “the law is the law.” He’s not in the country illegally and was not admitting to such a thing.
Entering the USA from Somalia requires a visa. once here you can apply for a waiver of the visa requirement… in this man’s case that would be part of the Asylum petition. Since the petition was denied, the waiver was not granted so the “illegal status” remains.
No. He has a work visa. That is not “illegal status”.
I believe Mahamed Mahamud has no status after the request was denied.
Cruel..A return to Somalia is like signing a death warrant .. How would the Judge like to take a casual
tour of Somalia.. Take his kids along.. ?
Seems all he’d have to do is walk through any southern Maine town where Somalian gangs are already operating…When they cut a cancer from your body do you feel sorry for it ? That same violent Somali society has ALREADY taken hold right here in Maine thanks to pathetic individuals that feel sorry for these people. It’s like trusting a rabid dog ….
And I’d be willing to bet those gang members aren’t contributing to the community as these people are.
I’m in favor on allowing immigrants into the USA PROVIDED they follow the rules. Most Somali’s were brought here by the Lutheran Church. I’m not opposed to that either, BUT I do feel that when a person or group brings in immigrants, THEY not taxpayers should be responsible for them until they are self sufficient.
Catholic Charities brought all these Somalis to Maine. Get your facts right.
No, that is incorrect. Lutheran Social Services brought the first Somalis to Lewiston. Catholic Charities may have brought the latest batch. No matter who brought them, they should be responsible for their upkeep until they become self sufficient. They should also be criminally culpable if they brought them in without visas.
That’s slander.
As per the article Mahamed Mahamud respects both the law and looks on people (his customers, as per the article) without consideration for the color of their skin or their background.
Can you do either?
Yeah, and they’re turning Maine into Somalia West.
Don’t get me wrong, this is obviously a nice hard working man. However, we can not pick and choose which illegal immigrant gets to stay based on their work ethic and morals. If you are not from this country there are laws that must be adhered to regardless. Unfortunately, not everyone gets to stay. (Unless of course you reach dry land in Florida, that’s an argument for another day) If everyone was allowed to stay there would not be such laws. I can not pick and choose which law I want to adhere to and then expect leniency because I’m a “good, hardworking person.” The problem we have is there is too much “picking and choosing” that no one knows where to draw the line. I am not saying that these people should or should not be allowed to live here, I am only saying that the law is the law and we can not be hypocritical it only exasperates the problem.
A sensible voice in the crowd….
Nothing illegal about him, your bad.
The article doesn’t say exactly how he entered the U.S., but it appears he entered illegally and then applied for asylum. And that request for asylum was denied. Apparently he has been allowed to stay while his case went through the appeals process.
And having children born here (citizens) doesn’t automatically mean that aliens here illegally will be allowed to stay. Each case, in theory, is adjudicated on its merits.
Having only the information supplied by the article, Mr. Mahamud and his family seem like the kind of folks we would like to see as immigrants. But we don’t know all the facts that the immigration judge was looking at. The Mahamud’s have had several years to have their case heard, and the ruling went against them. The system isn’t perfect, but I’m confident that Mr. Mahamud has had fair hearing.
It would be nice if we could look at each case individually and pick those who should be allowed to stay. However, there are about 11 million illegal aliens in the U.S. and there’s no way that we could spend years on each of them as we adjudicated their cases. If our politicians would stop “playing politics” for awhile, perhaps they could come up with some solutions for our immigration mess. If they did, eventually we would no longer have to deal with situations like this.
Read again:
“Asylum-seekers are different from refugees,” Giantris said. “They, too,
might be fleeing persecution or war,” but they came here undocumented
or illegally. Once they are here, many ask for protection to stay.
did you used to be the building and ground super at emvti/emtc back in the day :) ?
No That was a relative, but I never knew him. He’s long dead.
Undocumented is not illegal. That’s why they use the word “OR” in the sentence!
You are playing with semantics. It is illegal to enter this country from Somalia without documents… including a visa.
google Zeituni Onyango, if you want to talk about “picking and choosing” …
Yes, but only the dry ground exemption relates to people only from Cuba. Cubans who are convicted of crimes in the US and who are naturalized US Citizens are not eligble for deportion back to Cuba on humanitarian grounds either.
YAH MUN !
This is great news for a change. An actual deportation of an Illegal Alien.
He has had a work permit, so he’s not illegal.
If he stays, he would then be an illegal.
But he isn’t, so what is your point? It is wrong to call him an illegal alien.
He entered the USA without a visa… he’s illegal.
He was awarded a permit to stay. You must be a tea bagger.
He has had a work permit. He is currently legal.
It doesn’t state that… You are reading way to far into this. It simply states he may have been undocumented, which means he didn’t enter on a work visa. You are beating a dead horse on this argument. If he had been an illegal alien way back when, they would have deported him, not issue a work visa.
Thousands of people enter this country every day without a visa. It’s not illegal to do so. For example, people from Canada enter the US on a daily basis, no visa required, just a valid passport from their home country. He’s not illegal.
But he’s not. He’s respecting the law and the decision of the judge.
What’s wrong with you?
Read it again. he arrived here illegally and THEN obtained a work visa. He would be permitted to stay IF he had come here legally.
“Asylum-seekers are different from refugees,’ Giantris said. ‘They, too, might be fleeing persecution or war,’ but they came here undocumented or illegally. Once they are here, many ask for protection to stay.”
Actually no. The US does not require a visa to visit this country, tourists & business people visit without visas on a regular basis. So he came here legally to visit (with whatever motivation), followed the legally required process and requested permission to stay at which point he was granted a work permit/visa, still legal. If he stayed now that he’s been told to leave he would be illegal but up to this point everything he’s done is perfectly legal.
Note that there are some countries that require you to apply for a visa while outside the country (Portugal), some that require you to apply as you enter the country (UK) and some that allow you to apply once you’re here. Clearly the US allows a person to apply from within the country.
The US does require visas to enter this country for simple visits, conducting business trips and working. Unless a country is part of the Visa Waiver Program, which the US is part of along with other mostly European Countries. The VWP allows non work stays of up to 90 days.
While someone is in the country on the VWP or with a visa they can petition to have their status changed. For example if a person with an H2B or J1 Visa for work becomes married to a US Citizen they can then file a I-129 to adjust their status and as someone who is in the US and requesting to apply for a Green Card.
Every South American Country to the best of my knowledge is not a member of the WVP and thus their citizens need a visa to enter the USA. I know this is specifically the case with Argentina, Bolivia, Chile and Brazil.
I don’t know if you are reading the same story as I am, sometimes the print version is different than the on-line version, but in the one I’m reading it states:
“He is not a refugee, which is a legally protected status”
“Asylum-seekers are different from refugees,” “They, too,
might be fleeing persecution or war,” but they came here undocumented or
illegally.”
Hence he was here illegally. The Judge denied his asylum request but gave him a temporary work permit. This is often done so that the subject does not have to spend time in jail. It does not negate the fact that he broke the law in his manner of arrival.
Harry: Read it one more time… there’s an “or” in the sentence. Coming to the US undocumented is different than coming to the us illegally. As stated by several, he could have come here to visit someone “legally”, and than requested asylum. This is not entering the country illegally. He didn’t overstay his welcome, as the judge gave him the work visa. And now that they are not renewing it, he is doing the right thing and returning to his country. All in all, I think this guy is a model visitor to this country!
That’s interesting. When I went to Portugal 15 years ago for 2 weeks, there was no visa process. Just showed them my passport and international driver’s license.
A 1 month trip to Egypt 5 years earlier required the consulate in NY to stamp several pages in my passport before I left. Maybe Portugal has changed since it became part of the Eurozone, and I wouldn’t go back to Egypt now on a bet! :)
Agreed, a simple visit didn’t/doesn’t require a visa but a longer visit does before entering the country, at least the way I understand it. I went 3 years ago for several days, no visa required. I may be mistaken that you had to get a visa for a longer term visit prior to entering the country but that was my understanding from the consulate in Boston. My point was that not all countries require a visa before entering the country, specifically the US, so the Somalian man in the article wasn’t doing anything illegal when he first entered the US.
Thanx. And that is how a LOT of people get in the door here, to disappear for years. A few months ago, a woman from the Philippines was coming to see her sister in Boston (and to have an anchor baby). She gave birth over the Pacific. No word since on what citizenship that poor kid has. :)
It’s great news if you actually read and understood the article. Mahamed Mahamud is not an illegal alien.
WHAT!!!!
Sounds like a positive guy and a great contributor to his community. I’m sure he’ll be missed.
That is a bigotted, uneducated statement if I ever heard one.
You’re racist.
Hateful
That’s not very nice. Did he ever harm you? If the answer is no, then stop being so mean. Shame on you.
I feel bad for this guy….I really do. It strikes me as odd though that Mainers will accept a person from a far away country because he’s a hard worker, but then in the very same breath deny a person from Massachusetts a job in Maine because they are a Masshole ? The Mass guy never even gets the chance to prove his hard work ethic, and THAT is OK. As far as I am concerned this guy needs to get in line as do ALL immigrants. We should not be handing out jobs and support to others until all of our own have been taken care of. Once this man is a LEGAL citizen of the USA….heck…I would hire him, but until then he is skirting around a process that keeps LEGAL Americans working. That is why a lot of LEGAL Americans are on welfare. Funny that our Governor, who has promised jobs for Mainers, doesn’t seem able to grasp this principle ?
Funny how you can babble on incoherently and then in your final sentence get to the reason you posted here. Your hatred for the governor. No where in the story does it mention the governor.
I say deport the people who are not working not contributing and leave this man and his family alone….
Illegal means illegal. He used up his work visa, now he has to go.
BUT
I hope the government is just as zealous about tossing out folks who do not work, and who may not have dark skin.
Mahamed Mahamud would have been here in this country illegally if he had not applied for and received his work visa or if he chose to overstay (without formally challenging the deportation, as he doesn’t appear to want to do) the deportation order.
I may be incorrect in saying this, but more than likely he was brought into the country through some sort of government program. I would guess that the start of his Cafe may have been started with assistance as well. Does an immigrant working on a permit pay taxes on the state/federal level like the rest of us. I am doubting if he and his wife are not US citizens then they aren’t contributing. If I started the same business on my own dollar I’d be paying from day one. Point being if you ant to play by our rules you should pay by our rules. I’m completely baffled on how an immigrant on a work permit can start a legit business anyway.
Nearly the entire American culture is made up of NON-AMERICANS! People have been immigrating here since Columbus! To me, a REAL American is someone who is willing to pull him or herself up by the bootstraps and make a decent living. Mr. Mahamud is a real American in my book.
Blah blah blah.
He’s an illegal.
Wow, what an intelligent reply. Unless someone can come up with an actual response, I’m just going to go ahead and assume that I’m right and you’re wrong.
Thats why he has a work visa and has been able to get business licenses, and sales tax certificates from the State of Maine right?
Did you read the article at all. He’s not an illegal alien. You can join amconservative and EJ Parsons at the next KKK rally.
He’s not an illegal.
Read the article again please.
Too bad about these people! AMERICAN people are being shafted and ripped of by there own Government because people like this come here saying they lost everything when they had to flee there country yet they open a business collect welfare and even get Social Security they are not entitled to and don’t deserve because of our crooked Government! Why should we care about them when there are homeless Americans in this country and others who are loosing everything they have and the Government doesn’t give a damn!!!!!!!!!!
Racists, racists, racists…….what a bunch of racists.
It’s Bush’s fault.
If wanting to get rid of criminals and illegals is racist then sign me up
And let`s not forget Obama, how many of his family is here illegally and on public assistance.
So how can President Bush be at fault.
Obama has deported more in FY 2011 than anyone ever has and FY 2012 looks to be the same.More American born whites get public assistance than any other group by a wide margin.
One point that should be right of yours. American born “U.S. CITIZENS” should be eligible for public assistance.
But this case isn`t about welfare ( which should be limited to 60 months lifetime ) or the rights of a certain race being stomped on.
It`s about ILLEGAL IMMIGRATION, he didn`t apply for a work visa until after her had entered the United States. He was denied asylum. And that is when he should have gone back home. Instead he pops out 2 anchor babies.
And yet he accepts the ruling and is leaving…
his “business” was most likely started because of the grant/seed money that the federal government gives to “refugees”
We don’t know that and even if he did, my answer to your “rant” would be, SO?
That would be speculation.
Why wouldn’t it be a great idea to have this guy apply for green card via the usual method, after all some of his children ARE citizens. Can you think of what might happen to them when it’s found out they are Americans?
Why can’t we just get rid of the “anchor babies” rule?
It’s been rather detrimental to our human services system because we generally end up footing the bill for those who have children when they can’t afford it or aren’t in a situation to do so.
In answer to your question, I don’t know. I don’t think this is the situation here as this family has had a positive impact where they live, GIVING to their community vs TAKE as many others (mostly americans) do.
I agree, time to get rid of the Anchor Baby Rule.
Because it is in the constitution. I believe that the rule at the time it was conceived made sense. Now it is being used in a way it was not intended to apply.
There is plenty in the constitution that not being use as intended..
according to Rush and Faux News maybe.
What article and section of the Constitution are you refering to?
It is the 14th Amendment. The pertinent part reads- all persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State of wherein they reside. This follows the principle of Jus De Soli that was used in France at the time the United States came into existence. The basic idea was that anyone born in France was French and the U /nited States adopted it. Jus de Soli actually goes back to the times of the Roman Empire. The United States also expanded jus de soli to allow for the rule of Lex Soli which established the rules that allow a person born out of the United States to one American Citizen parent to themselves be an American Citizen. Jus de Soli does not apply to diplomats or consular officers.
Until 1924 Jus de Soli did not apply to Native Americans as they were considered not to be under the jurisdiction of the United States. For more information an interesting case to read about is the case of United States versus Wong Kim Ark. He was born in the United States to Chinese Immigrants. As an adult he went to China and then came back to the US but was denied entry under the restrictions that Congress had put on admitting people from Asia into the country./
Okay. Guess we learn something new every day.
There is a right way to immigrate to this country and a wrong way = illegal alien.
This family did it the wrong way and should be deported, along with the 2 kids that were born here. (If they are here illegally then all acts while here should be illegal). Should also forfeit any property or funds they made here illegally. When he is deported make it so he can`t apply for legal statis for 20 years. Maybe if he had gone thru the proper channels we wouldn`t be reading about this family. Unemployment would be lower if they deported ALL illegals.
Immigration Policy in this country is messed up. I know first hand as I am involved in it right now. This man has come here to our country and our state and worked hard to make a better life for himself and his family. He seems to be a credit to what America should truly be all about. He has been legal to stay here the whole time. He should be allowed to stay in my opinion.
Remember the British couple who also had a successful business and they were sent back?What’s up with that business now?
He pays both business and personal taxes and is supported by the community.There are a good many people who were lucky enough to be born here who have never contributed anything to America.
I suggest you read this article closely. His cafe does not make a profit. He does not indicate how he survives. He claims his wife has a job as an interpreter. Perhaps she makes enough money for the family to survive on, but it doesn’t say that in the article. If he is not making a profit, he is not paying taxes, he’s getting refunds. His wife’s source of income is translating for others who are in effect being ill-served if they are now American citizens and are being enabled by NOT having to learn English. This piece is pure liberal propaganda.
He is paying meals/payroll taxes,business licenses,etc.I’ve worked for many years in restaurants and they pay a lot of taxes and fees-profitable or not.How his wife makes her living is secondary.NOWHERE does it say that he ran the business improperly.I will agree that all should learn English.If I go to another country where English is not the primary language,I need to adapt.
Really? You know he is paying all these taxes HOW? You’ve seen his tax return? If this guy hasn’t made a profit in eight years, you can bet this is a “cash only” business and you’ll never see a bit of taxes paid. No business can hide profits like cash only restaurants. I repeat. This article is pure liberal fluff.
Seems like you know a lot about hiding profits and cheating on taxes.Maybe you should be audited.
Been audited, got a refund. I know of what I speak. Also am familiar with the restaurant industry, although I never owned a business in that field. My point is that this article, if it in intended to show that Mahumad was a hard worker who never used taxpayer funds, never addressed that issue at all, but instead presented a man who ran a business that never made a profit, and clearly used at least taxpayer funds to educate two children who were born here and one who was not. Nor does the article indicate how he survived financially, especially since we DO know that he never made enough to report income from running his restaurant. This article, I repeat, is pure BS and lousy reporting.
Alright. Maybe you did own your own business. When did the IRS force you to close it down, then?
Come on.
It is a myth that immigrants refuse to learn English. English is a path to opportunity.
How many languages do you speak? (I am assuming you speak at least one…) If you were fortunate enough to pick up an additional language, then tell me how quickly it took until you were fluent in that language?
Another language, like a lot of things, like, for example, understanding people come to this country and what people really do when they come here, has to be learned.
… and your point is?
Angus King brought all the somolian people into the State of Maine, for quick money from the Federal government when billie bob was president… nobody else wanted them… Then they became the Maine taxpayers problem… I would like to see how they upgraded their neighborhood since moving here…
There will be some culture shock for sure… Pirates could use a few strong hands… As michelle obama once said Somolia is right next door to Obama’s home country, Kenya.. (-;
people like you are one of the reasons Obama will be re-elected.
Before the Somalians and other third worlders arrived , Portland was the biggest, White welfare community in the United States. With Lewiston not that far behind. White Irish made up those white Maine welfare communities because they were pressured out of the Boston ,Ma. area including some Massachusetts employers putting up ‘Help wanted, Irish need not apply” signs.
Look around Maine in 2012. While many Irish assimilated into law abiding citizens, they still make up the largest ethnic population of Maine’s prison population. Maybe it was a mistake to let the Irish into this country.
you might have a point, but I’ll let you tell them…
I don’t know if anyone has mentioned it but what about having kids in this country as an illegal alien? I don’t think their children should be granted citizenship so easily. I’ve also heard all I need to hear about work permits and visas on here. He’s going to lose them, end of story. In regard to his business not being profitable the IRS doesn’t expect new businesses to turn a profit for up to 5 years. I know it says 8 but as Mahamed said the restaurant is more of a meeting place than anything else. Correct me if I’m wrong but he can consider this as a hobby but entitle it as a business. Nothing wrong with that. Even so, it does make me wonder like many others here. If he hardly received an income at all was he collecting assistance? If so, I don’t see much of a difference between welfare bums and him. Although he appears to play an active role in his community which is more than I can say for a hell of a lot of people!
I pass on eating there.
I don’t pass on Three One Cafe. It’s a great restaurant, and I’ve been lucky enough to attend community events where they provided catering (at their own expense). This is a real loss.
Deport him to Guilford.
Seriously, BDN, seriously?
Are your moderators on coffee break?
I believe if you hit flag, the disqus people flag it and then Bangor daily checks it
So many Mainers here supporting the deportation of two American citizens — children born and raised in Maine — and their family who contributed to the community. How shameful can you get?
I ‘d rather have Mahamed Mahamud living in Skowheagan and in my neighborhood than the welfare BUMS and their welfare BUM 20 year somethings that dont work and booze it up every night and day of the week.