Saint Paul, MN – On Day two of the Oromo soccer tournament, three games were played. The first game between Dire Dawa and Oromo United (OU) was one of the most anticipated games in the division. Natural rivals, the two teams played a sophisticated game. OU won 2-1 leaving the defending champs, Dire, arguably caught in a difficult grouping, unhappy and vulnerable.

Bareedduu Oromo (Miss Oromo Pageant) is this Thursday. Started in Seattle Washington, organizers of Oromo pageant are taking their experience on the road. For the first time, the Oromo pageant will be held in Little Oromia.

The tradition began in 2003 during North American Oromo Soccer Tournament in Seattle. It was colorfully repeated last year creating even more buzz leading to the selection of last year's winner to participate in Miss Oromia Pageant held in Oromia.

By Oromsis Adula*

It’s Sunday afternoon and the weather is brisk in Minneapolis. The owner of Dire Dawa Restaurant cleans the backyard where he plans to open a balcony for social outings. He tells me that he is prepping for spring and summer. Inside the restaurant, three men are chatting away, waiting for food and watching Al Jazeera's coverage of the uprising in Libya.

Born in Mada Walabu in the Bale Zone of the Oromia region in Ethiopia, he moved to Kenya at the age of eleven. After three years in Kenya without formal education, he arrived in the States in 2004.

With his Ethiopian third grade education and not a word of English, he was placed into sixth grade based on his age. After spending three years in Kenya doing nothing, eight-hour school days were simply unbearable. He couldn't communicate with teachers and classmates.