Multicultural Perspectives
When encouraging equitable engagement, it is essential for Franklin Co. Metroparks to consider the impacts and considerations of various groups. Recently resettled Americans are a quintessential component of our Columbus community. These Americans come from endless national backgrounds and offer unique incites for issues pertaining to accessibility.
Research
Central Ohio has a long history with incoming American residents. Throughout the 19th century, a large influx of Europeans settled in what is today Ohio.1 Immigrants from all time periods and nationalities have made Ohio what it is today.
Pictured Right: The Office of Opportunities for New American’s logo. This government body was established by then-Governor John Kasich to provide enrichment opportunities for this unique demographic. Image courtesy of the New Americans Report.1
The New American community is still one of Ohio’s fastest-growing communities. In fact, from 2000 to 2018, Ohio’s foreign-born population increased 56%, now accounting for over 5% of the state’s total population.1 In recognition of the academic and career contributions New Americans have made throughout Ohio, Governor John Kasich created the Office of Opportunities for New Americans to enhance opportunities for success.1 In addition to career training and business development, the Office of Opportunities for New Americans also generates yearly New American statistics to track growth trends.
Today, many New Americans live throughout Central Ohio. However, this dynamic group faces considerable challenges upon establishment.2 Thankfully, organizations such as Community Refugee and Immigration Services (C.R.I.S.) are available throughout the region to provide support for immigrants and their families.
Community Refugee and Immigration Services (C.R.I.S)
Pictured Left: Community Refugee and Immigration Services’ (C.R.I.S.) logo. This organization works with people from all over the world upon their arrival in Ohio. C.R.I.S. provides many services and support systems for New Americans, including counseling, health services, education services, etc. Image courtesy of C.R.I.S.3
To gain further insight on challenges facing the New American community, Jeremy Hollon, Director of C.R.I.S.’s Community Connectors mentor program was spoken with. Community Refugee and Immigration Services is a one-stop-shop for many needs New Americans may have.2 Whether it be family services, government paperwork, job listings or youth extracurriculars, C.R.I.S. offers a slew of opportunities for New Americans to become more engaged with broader Columbus community.2 One of the largest non-profits based in Central Ohio, C.R.I.S. services resettlement organizations as well as 5 Columbus area school districts.2 The organization personally mentors 130 students and offers resources for 68 different languages, the largest being Spanish.2 Currently, Jeremy is most excited about the organization’s recent youth involvement with community art throughout Columbus. This has been an important area of STEAM enrichment, especially during the pandemic.2
Constraints to Access
In combination with Jeremy’s interview, considerable research has been evaluated on the variety of obstacles facing the New American community. While these impediments come across in all areas of day-to-day life, they extend to the enjoyment of the Franklin Co. Metroparks system. To fully combat issues related to equitable engagement, the Metroparks should work to address the following problems:
- Language –
Language is one of the largest barriers for New Americans.4 Understandably so, many are from non-English speaking nations.4 Most signs and materials available to the general public in America are written English.4 In an effort to combat this, more effort is needed to translate materials to a variety of languages.
- Assimilation Culture –
Columbus is a perfect example of an increasingly diverse community. However, with increased diversity, culture shock is rampant on both arriving and receiving sides of immigration. In fact, “When faced with a sudden, destabilizing change in local demographics…people’s views turn anti-immigrant”.5 These anti-immigration ideologies make the culture surrounding immigration very chaotic for New Americans.5
- Health –
Discrimination, of the many challenges as noted above, is also linked to poor health. A recent study on the Ohio Hispanic population found increased occurrences of poor mental and physical health as a direct result of discrimination.6 Lack of communication above and how to properly use active, outdoor spaces (such as Franklin Co. Metroparks) also contributes to the issue.2
Overall Considerations – Establishing Communication
Families C.R.I.S. supports try to be very active in the Central Ohio park systems, including Franklin Co.2 Metroparks. The youth he works with love to play outdoor sports and use public places to do so.2 However, the City of Columbus has made more efforts than Franklin Co. when it comes to outreach. Jeremy had wonderful suggestions for Franklin Co. Metroparks to improve the accessibility of their parks for New Americans:
- Establish Communication with New American organizations –
New American organizations want to work with Franklin Co. Metroparks, however, without outreach, many assume the agency just doesn’t prioritize their needs.2 Leadership in these non-profits want to advertise jobs, events, food stops, etc. to their participating families.2 But, they need to know about the opportunities! Reaching out and building this connection will the most crucial step.2
- Increase physical activity areas for families –
While picnic areas and trails are useful in endless ways, many New Americans (and the general population) run out of things to do.2 With young, active children, this can be problematic. Jeremy recommends creating spaces that engage both the curiosity and physical energy of these families.2 Jungle gyms, interactive play areas, etc. are a great place to start. However, Jeremy and others from organizations like C.R.I.S. are interested in working with Franklin Co. Metroparks to develop areas that are especially user-friendly for New American families.2
- Increase symbolic signage over language-dense signage –
As mentioned earlier, language barriers are very stressful for the New American community. If a New American even desires to learn English, doing so can take years. No community member should have to wait to enjoy Franklin Co. Metroparks! Long-winded signs describing the do’s, don’ts’s and histories of a language are not accessible for many New Americans.2 However, colored and symbolic signs are much more accessible and universal.2 Increasing this type of signage throughout the metro-parks in addition to current signage could be an easy change that makes the parks more user-friendly.2
Pictured Right: Children enjoying an interactive play area. The development of areas like this would be very useful for New American families (and all families in Central Ohio). Organizations like C.R.I.S. would love to help develop ideas about these types of play areas and how to make them accessible for all families. Image courtesy of Fitness Gaming.7
C.R.I.S. is interested in working with Franklin Co. Metroparks to improve equitable engagement.
To learn more about C.R.I.S., please visit their website:
To reach Jeremy to discuss projects further, please email him at jhollon@cris-ohio.org
Acknowledgments
The Metroparks Equitable Engagement team thanks Jeremy Hollon for taking the time to speak with Anjelica on the variety of ways Franklin Co. Metroparks can improve its connections with the New American community in Central Ohio.
References
1 New Americans Report. (n.d.). Ohio: Opportunities for New Americans. Retrieved from March 12, 2021, from https://development.ohio.gov/newamericans/report.html
2 Hollon, J. (personal communication March 31, 2021)
4 Alba, R. D., Logan, J. R., Stults, B. J., Marzan, G., & Wenquan Zhang. (1999). Immigrant Groups in the Suburbs: A Reexamination of Suburbanization and Spatial Assimilation. American Sociological Review, 64(3), 446–460. https://doi.org/10.2307/2657495
5 Hopkins, D. J. (2010). Politicized Places: Explaining Where and When Immigrants Provoke Local Opposition. American Political Science Review, 104(1), 40–60. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0003055409990360
6 Tuggle, A. C., Cohen, J. H., & Crews, D. E. (2018). Stress, migration, and allostatic load: A model based on Mexican migrants in Columbus, Ohio. Journal of Physiological Anthropology, 37(1), 28. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40101-018-0188-4
Images
1 New Americans Report. (n.d.). Ohio: Opportunities for New Americans. Retrieved from March 12, 2021, from https://development.ohio.gov/newamericans/report.html
3 Community Refugee & Immigration Services – CRIS’ mission is to help refugees and immigrants reach safety and stability, sustain self-sufficiency, and achieve successful integration into the Central Ohio community. (n.d.). Retrieved April 25, 2021, from https://www.crisohio.org/
7 Fitness-gaming.com. (2015, July 6). PlayAlive Interactive Electronic Playgrounds Revolutionize Outdoor Play. Fitness Gaming. https://www.fitness-gaming.com/news/schools/playalive-interactive-electronic-playgrounds-revolutionize-outdoor-play.html