Judge orders NEA to allow Portland immigrant to compete in national poetry contest
Source: Bangor Daily News
A federal judge Friday ordered the National Endowment for the Arts to allow a Portland immigrant to participate in the national Poetry Out Loud contest.
Allan Monga, 17, of Westbrook, last month won the state Poetry Out Loud contest, sponsored in Maine by the Maine Arts Commission and nationally by the NEA. The poetry recital contest rules require participants at the state and national levels to be citizens of the U.S. or permanent resident aliens.
The ruling, issued about 4:30 p.m. by U.S. District Court Judge John Woodcock, means that Monga will compete for the national title next week in Washington, D.C.
Although the NEA references federal statutes as suggestive of congressional intent, there is no congressional enactment that requires it to impose these citizenship or permanent resident requirements to the [Poetry Out Loud] competition, he wrote.
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Read more: https://bangordailynews.com/2018/04/20/news/portland/judge-orders-nea-to-allow-portland-immigrant-to-compete-in-national-poetry-contest/
procon
(15,805 posts)How can people who live in a country that prides itself as being a nation of immigrants with a multicultural diversity, be so goddamned hung up on race and ethnicity?
BigmanPigman
(51,560 posts)National Education Assoc. at first read.
The tRump admin has turned the word "immigrant" into a four letter word instead of a word said with pride as we have always been so proud to call ourselves a nation of immigrants for over 250 years. The moron has zero love for this country. I wish he would go live in Russia since he loves it so much.
Soxfan58
(3,479 posts)When I just heard this on my local news, Very talented young man.