NORTHAMPTON , January 08, 2006 (The Republican) - When Somali refugees came to Massachusetts and Maine about three years ago, they weren't greeted with open arms.

In Holyoke , the commonwealth's poorest city, the City Council voted against taking on more poor people. In Lewiston , Maine , the mayor asked that they stop coming.

Many who resisted said the cities could not afford to host an influx of poor people.

But others suspected that a subtle form of racism was at work.

It is the overt and covert forms of racism that organizers of a documentary screening are hoping will be the topic of a discussion resulting in action against all forms of racism.

"Racism has become a back-door issue," said H. John Fisher, a coordinator with the Holyoke-based Massachusetts Fair Housing Center .

The center and HAP Inc., the region's housing agency based in Springfield that manages federal rental subsidies and provides landlord-tenant services, are co-sponsors of the meeting.

The meeting set, for Tuesday at 7 p.m. at the Media Education Project, 60 Masonic St., will begin with a free screening of the award-winning documentary, "The Letter: An American Town and the Somali Invasion."

The one-hour documentary examines life in Lewiston , Maine , in 2002, when the city's mayor wrote a letter to Somali leaders there urging them to help stop the further migration of their countryfolk to the area. Locally, said Fisher, "There are many groups working to some extent around racism, but I don't think we talk to each other a whole lot."

Fisher said Hampden, Hampshire and Franklin counties, which include progressive communities, have turned complacent.

Referring to "The Cosby Show," the popular 1980s sitcom, Fisher said some people regard racism as a non-issue.

"The Huxtables have moved into the neighborhood - What's the problem?"

"We can all say racism is bad, go home and feel good about ourselves," he said. But that's not what the upcoming meeting is about. "We need to talk."