We have commented on the danger of permitting Islamic enclaves to develop in America as they have in Europe. See in particular our post The United Islamic States of America?, July 9, 2010.

Until now, immigrant assimilation has been the American way. But there has been a change.

Large numbers of Somalian Muslims are being allowed into the country to be supported on welfare. They are being taught Arabic, but not necessarily English. In all probability they will continue to consider themselves subject to sharia law rather than US state and federal law.

Why is this being allowed to happen?

Have the normal, meticulous vetting procedures for legal immigrants been lifted in the case of Muslims?

If so, who is responsible for such a decision, and why has it been made?

Are there bureaucrats in the State Department actively working to bring about massive Muslim immigration?

Family Security Matters reports:

Newly arrived Somali immigrants have transformed small towns and cities throughout the United States into tuulas (Somali villages).

The process is underway in such places as Lewiston, Maine; Shelbyville, Tennessee; St. Cloud, Minnesota; Clarkston,Georgia; and Jamestown, North Dakota.

The Jamestown Sun reports that 400 Somalis have applied for public housing in the past four months.

The Somali immigrants in Garden City, Kansas and nearby small towns have created the Somali Community Center of Southwest Kansas in order to tap into public welfare programs. …

In East San Diego, the newly arrived Somalis have created a Little Mogadishu. The streets are lined with Somali stores, shops, and mosques. In the midst of this ethnic enclave stands the Iftin Charter School, where K-8 students are introduced to Arabic. 99% of the student population is Somali; Arabs constitute the remaining 1%.

The American Somalis now display the highest unemployment and poverty rates in the country. They also remain the least educated. …

This problem is crystallized by the present situation in Lewiston, Maine, where African Muslims … began arriving in 2001 at the rate of 100 a month. …

The small town in Maine with a population of 30,000 provided welfare to anyone in need, with the state picking up half the tab. Recipients, including the Muslim refugees, were allowed a generous five years of assistance before their benefits became terminated, and extensions for several additional years on the public dole were not difficult to obtain. Single parents could stay on welfare and go to college.

Public housing was also available, although, with the influx of Somalis, the housing projects became packed to capacity. Many of the new project dwellers were single Somali mothers with large broods of children. Those who are unable to obtain public housing were handed Section 8 vouchers, which the federal government provided to subsidize their rent in private apartments. …

The newcomers have shown scant interest in securing employment. When Renee Bernier, the president of the Lewiston city council, offered to hire 30 Somalis at the rate of $8 to $10 an hour to hold warning signs at construction sites, few displayed interest. The handful who did apply, said that they were only willing to work between the hours of 10 a.m. and 2 p.m.

The Somali population of Lewiston now exceeds 40,000.