In Monday's post, (Mis)Understanding the Impact of Refugee Resettlement: Branstner to speak in Baxter 1/5, Bluestem noted that Ron Branstner, a California Minuteman who's jumped from bashing immigrants to rabble rousing against refugees, was a private Facebook event hosted by Bill Dian.
According to today's online Dairyland Peach, the Central Minnesota Tea Party Patriots are taking credit for organizing and hosting the event.
In Tea Party to meet Tuesday on refugee resettlement, we learn:
The Central Minnesota Tea Party Patriots will be holding a special meeting Tuesday, Jan. 5, at the Journey North Community Church in Baxter.
Ron Branstner, a volunteer with the US/Mexico border group formerly known as the Minutemen will speak on “Understanding the Impact of Refugee Resettlement.”
The event will be from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. . . .
Having ties to Minnesota, Branstner joined forces with local groups to understand refugee resettlement. He believes in education of Constitutional law as the Founding Fathers intended, while promoting the Bill of Rights.
A free will offering will be taken to help cover costs,
For more information call (218) 838-8000.
The Central Minnesota Tea Party Patriots are based in Browerville, according to the group's inactive Facebook page. It is a separate chapter from the Central Minnesota Tea Party, which is active in the St. Cloud area and maintains a Facebook page of its own.
Organizer Bill Dian chairs Rep. Mark Anderson's campaign committee
The phone number in the announcement is that of Bill Dian, according to the registration for the Mark Anderson for MN Representative Committee at the Minnesota Campaign Finance and Public Disclosure Board. According to the online document, Dian serves as campaign chair for Anderson, R-Lake Shore.
We'll be curious if Anderson and other area representatives get on the Branstner bandwagon. While David Montgomery at the Pioneer Press reported in November that Daudt, Dayton at odds over national Syrian refugee program, Speaker Kurt Daudt's letter only addressed Syrian refugees. In a November 16 Facebook post, Rep. Anderson concurred with the Crown Republican.
In Monday's online version of the Star Tribune, Milo Koumpilova reported in Minnesota prepares to receive more refugees in 2016:
Daudt, R-Crown, said that his concerns about Syrian resettlements persist, but that with respect to other nationalities, the state should continue in its “rich tradition of welcoming immigrants from across the globe.”
Other Republican state representatives, like Becker's Jim Newberger, have adopted a more restrictive view about all refugee resettlement, asking to:
stop the flow of refugees until we can absolutely assure the safety of our own citizens. Our current screening methods are not adequate to do the job.
Branstner, on the other hand, objects to refugee resettlement as a "form of slavery," according to the Morrison County Record. A St. Cloud Times article from September, Speaker criticizes refugee resettlement programs, also noted Branstner's opposition.
A note on the location
As we reported on Monday (Mis)Understanding the Impact of Refugee Resettlement: Branstner to speak in Baxter 1/5, the church itself is not a sponsor of the event. Rather, the hosts have rented the space, according to the lead pastor.
The congregation is part of Converge Worldwide, a church-planting ministry associated with Swedish Baptists. Converge Worldwide works on international missions helping refugees, as well as assisting refugees who have resettled in the United States.
The Journey North's co-parent church Grace Fellowship in Brooklyn Park runs a robust Grace Refugees Global Mission Team offering everything from ESL lessons to community garden plots. According to its webpage, Grace Refugees Global Mission Team is a partner of Arrive Ministries (Formally World Relief MN). In an April 2015 article, Fact-checking refugee resettlement activist [Ann Corcoran], the St. Cloud Times reported:
In Minnesota, there are five resettlement providers: Catholic Charities of St. Paul and Minneapolis, International Institute of Minnesota, Arrive Ministries (Formerly World Relief), Minnesota Council of Churches and Lutheran Social Services.
All totaled, the five organizations helped to resettle 2,214 refugees in 2013 and 2,232 in 2014. Projections are to resettle 1,765 in 2015.
We hope the event takes place and that someone tapes Branstner's remarks for analysis. As John Milton once argued, the cure for misguided speech isn't censorship, but more speech and critical thinking.
Photo: Ron Branstner speaking at the Granite VFW in St. Cloud.
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