"ALMANAC" FROM St.

CLOUD STATE UNIVERSITY.

THANKS, YOU TWO.

"OPERATION METRO SURGE" WAS THE OFFICIAL NAME OF INCREASED IMMIGRATION ENFORCEMENT THIS WINTER BUT FEDERAL AGENTS WERE ACTIVE ACROSS THE STATE, INCLUDING HERE IN ST.

CLOUD.

HOME TO MINNESOTA'S LARGEST SOMALI AMERICAN COMMUNITY OUTSIDE OF THE TWIN CITIES.

AHMED LAARRI MANAGES ST.

CLOUD'S SOMALI COMMUNITY RADIO STATION, KZYS, HERE IN St.

CLOUD.

WELCOME TO ALMANAC."

THANKS FOR TAKING THE TIME.

>> THANK YOU.

>> Cathy: YOU KNOW, YOUR STATION IS ONE OF MANY IN BROADCAST HISTORY, YOU PROBABLY KNOW THIS, IN THE 1930s, WHEN RADIO WAS JUST STARTING ITS ASCENDENS, THERE WERE YIDDISH RADIO STATIONS FOR THE JEWISH POPULATION, THERE WERE GERMAN LANGUAGE STATIONS, ITALIAN LANGUAGE STATIONS, AND NOWADAYS WE'RE TALKING ABOUT A SOMALI LANGUAGE RADIO STATION.

AND I'M JUST CURIOUS, FROM WHERE YOU SIT, IS THERE STILL A ROLE FOR A STATION IN THIS DAY AND AGE?

>> THANK YOU FOR INVITING ME TO THE PROGRAM.

AND ALSO I DO WANT TO THANK THE AUDIENCE.

THIS RADIO IS JUST VERY IMPORTANT FOR THIS COMMUNITY, LOCAL St.

CLOUD COMMUNITY.

AND ALSO BECAUSE OF THE MANY PEOPLE, THEY DO WATCH OUR PROGRAMS THROUGH OUR STREAMING, SUCH AS FACEBOOK, YouTube, AND SOMETIMES TIKTOK, WHERE A LOT OF PEOPLE -- WHAT A LOT OF PEOPLE ARE USING NOWADAYS.

SO IT IS GREAT THAT WE DO HAVE AN FM RADIO.

THE FM IS VERY POPULAR IN THE SOMALI-SPEAKING COMMUNITY IN St.

CLOUD.

SO WE BROADCAST OUR PROGRAMS IN ENGLISH AND OMALI LANGUAGE.

>> Cathy: IT WAS VERY DIFFICULT, OBVIOUSLY, DURING THE SURGE HERE IN St.

CLOUD.

AND I'M WONDERING, HOW DID YOUR STATION, HOW DID YOUR SERVICES SERVE THE COMMUNITY?

>> WELL, Y UNDERSTANDING, AND EVERYBODY'S UNDERSTANDING, I.C.E.

IS A FEDERAL ORGANIZATION, LIKE OTHER LAW ENFORCEMENT.

SO, WE HAVE TO BE VERY CAREFUL AS RADIO.

WE RELIED ON THE NEWS, LOCAL NEWS, WHAT'S HAPPENING, TO TRANSLATE THAT NEWS TO OUR LISTENERS.

AND ALSO WE INVITED IMMIGRATION AUTHORITY, St.

CLOUD LEGAL AID OFFICE HAD A COUPLE OF PROGRAMS THAT THEY COME TO St.

CLOUD PUBLIC COMMUNITY RADIO AND THEY SENT MESSAGES TO THE COMMUNITY ABOUT THINGS THAT THEY CAN DO, THINGS THAT THEY CANNOT DO.

SO WE INTERVIEWED IMMIGRATION LAWYERS, WE DID TALK TO SOME STATE REPRESENTATIVES, STREAMING OUR PROGRAMS FROM MINNEAPOLIS.

IT WAS VERY HELPFUL AND ALSO A COUPLE OF TIMES COMMUNITY MEMBERS, THEY HAVE TO CALL OUR SHOW, OUR PROGRAMS ON EITHER LIVE, WE STREAM LIVE OUR SHOWS, AND ALSO THEY HAVE THEIR CONCERNS ABOUT I.C.E.

AND THERE IS A LARGE ACTUALLY STAND BETWEEN SOMALI AMERICAN COMMUNITY AND I.C.E.

HERE IN St.

CLOUD.

>> Eric: TELL US BOUT HIRING RADIO PERSONALITIES, HOSTS OR HOST HE SAYS FOR THE VARIOUS SEGMENTS ON THE SHOW.

WHAT'S THAT PROCESS LIKE?

>> WELL, YOU KNOW, WE'RE A VERY SMALL COMMUNITY, IT'S VERY TOUGH, YOU KNOW, BECAUSE THE IMMEDIATE WHERE -- THE MEDIA, YOU KNOW, IT'S VERY COMPETITIVE IN THE MEDIA.

>> Eric: FOR SURE.

>> THERE'S A LOT OF RADIO, NEWSPAPER.

I USED FOR WORK FOR THE LOCAL NEWSPAPER, St.

CLOUD TIMES.

AND ALSO THEN WHEN THIS RADIO IS AVAILABLE, I JOINED THEM AS A REPORTER.

AND THEN I BECOME PART OF THE MANAGEMENT FOR THE RADIO.

BECAUSE OF FUNDING, WE USED TO RELY ON THE VOICE OF AMERICA, VOICE OF AMERICA USED TO TRANSLATE FROM ENGLISH TO OTHER LANGUAGES, INCLUDED SOMALI, SWAHILI, OTHER AFRICAN, SPANISH, BUT THAT'S GONE.

THAT'S NOT THERE, BECAUSE THE FUNDING WAS CUT.

SO NOW WE HAVE THE CHALLENGE TO FIND REPORTERS THAT CAN COVER ON STATE, LOCAL, OR NATIONWIDE.

>> Cathy: JUST CURIOUS.

WE HAVE ABOUT A MINUTE LEFT.

WHAT'S THE MOST POPULAR LOCAL SHOW YOU HAVE?

>> FOR OUR RADIO?

IT DEPENDS WHO YOU ASK.

A LOT OF PEOPLE CALL FOR THE RADIO FOR DIFFERENT REASONS.

INCLUDING OUR MUSIC.

WHENEVER WE PLAY MUSIC FOR OLD FOLKS, YOUNG PEOPLE WILL CALL AND SAY, THAT'S MUSIC FOR OLD PEOPLE.

AND THEY ASK IF MAYBE WE CAN CHANGE TO THE YOUNGER GENERATION MUSIC.

YOU KNOW.

SO THERE ARE CHALLENGES.

BUT WE DO HAVE ALL KIND OF DIFFERENT PROGRAMS.

NEWS, MUSIC, AND ALSO TALK SHOWS.

BUT IT DEPENDS WHO YOU ASK.

I LOVE ALL OF THEM.

>> Eric: APPRECIATE OUR WORK FOR THE COMMUNITY.

>> Cathy: YES.

>> Eric: GLAD YOU COULD COME OVER AND VISIT.

>> Cathy: SO