The Harvard Family Research Project separated from the Harvard Graduate School of Education to become the Global Family Research Project as of January 1, 2017. It is no longer affiliated with Harvard University.
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The cases in the Create Your Own Case Toolkit were developed by the Community Engagement Team (CET) outreach workers in the Department of Human Service Programs in Cambridge, Massachusetts. You can use the cases to draw inspiration for your own case writing or as a basis for discussions with others to improve your family engagement skills and knowledge. |
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| CASE 7: Engaging the Whole Family to Find a Solution Naima Abdullah
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THE BACK STORY:
Farah and his wife, Farhiya, came to the United States with their 4 children, Adam 14, Khalid 12, Hassan 10, and Sara 7, in October 2005. They live in a small city near Boston. Farah and Farhiya went to college in Somalia and worked as teachers. Their English language skills weren’t very good. When they first arrived in the U.S., Farah and Farhiya were extremely worried about how they were going to feed their family. They were told that in the U.S., immigrants and low-income families were assisted by a specific program called Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), or the Food Stamps Program. SNAP helps families to have food on their tables, in their fridges, and in their stomachs. Farah couldn't grasp the concept of receiving free food from anyone, especially the government. Farah had been a hardworking man back home. He was a teacher there and very accustomed to being able to not only feed his family with his hard work, but also control his surroundings. Farah wanted to protect his pride and dignity above everything. He asked, “How could a man of my age beg for anything?” Farah and Farhiya didn’t apply.
DISCUSSION QUESTION:
How might you talk to Farah and Farhiya about the differences between the social welfare system in the United States and the system in Somalia?
THE FULL STORY:
The outreach worker knew that Farah’s sister (who had lived in the U.S. a while) supported SNAP and other government programs to help the needy. The outreach worker asked Farah if they could talk with his sister together. Farah’s sister then helped him understand that these types of benefits were made for people in his situation. It was not considered begging to accept these benefits, and no one was going to judge or brand him. She also helped Farah understand the difference in mentality between attitudes in America and those in Somalia. His sister insisted that Farah begin school and explained that, until he could learn the language and get a job to provide for his family, he should accept SNAP benefits.
Farah had never expected to get help through assistance from the government, but he finally applied for SNAP. Eventually, he got a GED and went on to start community college. He was able to regain his pride when he found a job with a parking company and could once more provide for his wife and kids.
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