Deqa Dhalac became mayor of South Portland, Maine, at the end of last year, following many years of striving to make a difference, beginning with her upbringing in her home nation of Somalia.
Deqa tells The New Arab, “My parents were a significant part of my growing up, telling me to do the right thing and always wanted us to have a space to express what we had to say.” “Our regime was authoritarian. My father used to tell us that other nations had democracies, and that people could vote for whomever they pleased.”
She was raised in a well-educated family who encouraged her to study languages, history, and politics, all of which she would later use in her career.
Finally arriving in 1992, after a trip that took her from Mogadishu to Rome – where she spent nearly two months at an airport as she sought asylum– to the UK, then to Canada, and then finally to Atlanta, where she became a permanent US resident.
She promptly started to work in grassroots political organizing, registering voters and training people about the necessity of participating in politics.
However, despite all of Atlanta’s advantages as a huge metropolis, the city’s quick pace finally caught up with her, leaving her with little time for herself.
“Atlanta is a big city, and my kids were young at the time. “I’d go to work and do community organizing, and the week would be over before I knew it,” she says. “I’ve always wanted to accomplish more, but I’ve never had the time.”
Her uncle told her she would have more time for herself in Maine once he relocated there in 2004.“Is there a place like that in the US? And you’ll still have time for yourself?” she asked herself, as she thought about continuing her education. She would eventually earn two master’s degrees at universities in the northeast.
When she visited her uncle, she liked the small-town feel with few distractions. The following year, in 2005, she moved up to Maine, a state known more for its cold climate and ageing population than for its political activism. Nevertheless, she continued with her community organising and dove into local politics in South Portland, a city of around 25,000.
Maine, America’s whitest state, was a major shift from Atlanta, a hub for African American culture, and even further from her original home of Somalia. Yet, around the time she moved there, a growing African – mainly Somali – community was taking shape, reflected in the state’s food and arts scene, and increasingly in its politics.
Unfortunately, not everyone in the state welcomed the newcomers with warm arms. Mayor Robert MacDonald of Lewiston sent an open letter in 2002 asking Somalis not to come. Demonstrations of support for African immigrants followed, a powerful expression of unity as Deqa settled into her new life in Maine.
Deqa thinks that the state’s tiny but growing population of young African immigrants would inspire local youths to become more politically engaged, in contrast to the state’s long-ageing white population.
“Those of us from other countries can get a good look from the youth.” They can see that it makes no difference what skin color they have. “They’ll be able to do it,” she asserts. “They’re the future,” says the narrator. They must take the initiative and be proactive.
She got support from New American Leaders, an organisation that helps people with immigrant backgrounds run for elected office, whom she met through Portland, Maine’s Vice Mayor Pious Ali, part of the state’s growing contingency of immigrant politicians.
“Becoming the first Somali American mayor in the United States, Deqa Dhalac is paving the way for other immigrant and BIPOC leaders and changing the face of leadership,” Megan Cagle, director of communications at New American Leaders, tells The New Arab.
“Much like Congresswoman Ilhan Omar and other Somali American elected officials, as a Black Muslim woman, Deqa challenges outdated and discriminatory ideas of who can and should serve in public office.”
In the end, she was voted in unanimously, a testament to her commitment to the local government and the confidence of her colleagues.
“It’s the most beautiful thing I ever did,” she says. “Having people from all parts of the world, doing good work and running for office. It’s just something to be really proud of.”