The Minnesota county of Beltrami, located about 225 miles north of Minneapolis, became the first county in the state — and quite possibly the first in the nation — to say “nope” to refugee resettlement within its borders.
In a meeting held earlier this evening (Tuesday, January 7), the County Board of Commissioners voted 3-2 to refuse any new refugees to be resettled in their county. The item was on their published agenda, but unlike other counties who have considered the issue, no public commentary was allowed.
The county board’s meeting room in downtown Bemidji was packed Tuesday night. People lined the walls and spilled into the hallway. Most in the crowd appeared to be opposed to refugees: When board chair Gaasvig asked the crowd for a show of hands of those opposed to consent, most of the hands in the room went up.
Several people in attendance were vocal in favor of accepting refugees. But when commissioners said they would not hold public comment at the meeting, attendees on both sides of the issue were angry when they couldn't speak.
Interestingly, Beltrami County includes parts of three large Ojibwe Reservations — Red Lake, White Earth, and Leech Lake. Having grown up in that area of the state and spent a lot of time in Bemidji, I can tell you racial tensions there were easily detectable. One of the ‘no’ votes came from the commissioner who represents the part of the county which includes a segment of the Red Lake nation. In a statement before the vote, Commissioner Tim Sumner, stated:
"If you're not a Native American from this area, we all have origin stories," said Sumner, a member of the Red Lake Nation. "I think most of the people here today are re-settlers. It just seems un-American to me to say that 'You're not welcome.'"
Also interestingly, according to the Minnesota Department of Human Services, “no primary refugees have been resettled in Beltrami County in the past five years.” Huh…
The Associated Press believes that no county in the nation has cast a dissenting vote on this issue. Until tonight.
The mast-head of the county’s official web site declares: “Beltrami County, Minnesota Living the Dream” [emphasis mine]. Apparently that dream does not include those seeking refuge from a foreign land.
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Side note: It does not appear that the board meetings are video-taped. If I find differently I’ll update with a link. There is a brief video shown in the article from the local newspaper, the Bemidji Pioneer. And I’ll update as more reaction to this decision comes in, especially from area political leaders.