Ekoue Abroussa: ‘The people who are giving education, they are the best people in New Hampshire’
This entry is part [part not set] of 13 in the series The Immigrants Among Us [http://manchester.local/inklink-series/the-immigrants-among-us/] Ekoue Abroussa’s family became refugees because his father worked for the government in the West African country of Togo. Due to political upheaval and ult
Country of Origin TOGO
Ekoue Abroussa’s family became refugees because his father worked for the government in the West African country of Togo. Due to political upheaval and ultimately civil war his family, parents, and five siblings became refugees in Benin.
They resided in the camps for multiple years and, while in Benin, he attended trade school learning photography Lutheran Services helped them in the refugee camps with asylum applications to Canada, the US, and Australia.
In 2014 when he was 19, seven members of his family immigrated here on asylum visas and joined a community of families in the Concord area they knew from the Benin refugee camps.. His wife and a son remain in Africa and he is still working on getting them here.
He currently has a green card and is in line for naturalization. He operates a photo studio in downtown Concord that caters to the local African immigrant communities. He is a true entrepreneur who embraces the opportunities in America. He credits the support he received as a newly arrived refugee for getting established as a business owner in Concord.
“The schools were great and the Small Business Development Center is very supportive. They help you to develop your business, you know, they teach how to do your taxes and how to do QuickBooks and how to do your bookings and all of the education. In the NHTI International Student Program, the educators are great. So you have to say that the people who are giving education, they are the best people in New Hampshire.”
He takes pains to describe the positive parts of his experience and his gratitude for being here. It has not all been easy and he describes an uneasy relationship at times between police and African immigrants. Common friction points cited by Ekoue include frequent traffic stops they consider profiling, language issues, and misunderstanding of culture.
However, Ekoue notes that the Concord Police Department has a Liberian-born officer who has been a bridge to the community. Local nonprofit Change for Concord is advocating on the community’s behalf to work out solutions and support the integration of different cultures.
