Trump plans crackdown on Somali communities in Minnesota: What we know

US President Donald Trump launched a verbal onslaught connected Somali immigrants connected Tuesday, arsenic national authorities prepared to motorboat a large migration crackdown targeting hundreds of undocumented Somalis successful the authorities of Minnesota.

In a agelong rant to reporters, Trump said helium did not privation Somali immigrants successful the United States, claiming that residents of the East African state “contributed nothing” to the US portion relying connected aid. Trump did not supply immoderate grounds to enactment these claims.

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This was conscionable the latest successful a drawstring of disparaging verbal attacks the US president has launched astatine the country’s Somali community. He posted akin remarks connected societal media past week and during his archetypal word arsenic president. Trump has besides repeatedly verbally targeted Ilhan Omar, the legislature typical who is simply a US national of Somali descent.

The president has appeared to absorption connected immigrants from processing countries with harsh remarks oregon policies, but for achromatic South Africans, for whom the US has accrued quotas.

The US has paused immigration from 19 countries deemed “high risk”, citing past week’s fatal shooting of 2 National Guard members by an Afghan national. At the extremity of October, the Trump medication reduced the fig of refugees the US volition judge adjacent twelvemonth to conscionable 7,500 – the lowest fig since the 1980 Refugee Act – with penchant to beryllium fixed to achromatic South Africans.

Then, connected Tuesday, US media reported that US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) would transportation retired an cognition successful Somali neighbourhoods successful the adjacent fewer days.

Much of the Somali diaspora has settled successful the US wrong the past 50 years. Here’s what we cognize astir wherefore Trump is targeting the assemblage now.

Jamal Said (left) of St Louis Park and Abdul Hersi of Minneapolis ticker the Minnesota Vikings successful the NFC Championship shot crippled astatine the Capitol Cafe, a fashionable Somali java shop, up of the NFL’s Super Bowl successful Minneapolis, Minnesota, the US, connected January 21, 2018 [Craig Lassig/Reuters]

What did Trump say?

Speaking to reporters pursuing a US Cabinet gathering connected Tuesday, Trump said helium didn’t privation Somalis successful the US, describing them arsenic “garbage”.

“We could spell 1 mode oregon the other, and we’re going to spell the incorrect mode if we support taking successful garbage into our country,” helium said.

“They lend nothing. I don’t privation them successful our country, I’ll beryllium honorable with you,” Trump told reporters without specifying whether helium was referring to citizens oregon irregular migrants.

“Some radical volition say, ‘Oh, that’s not politically correct.’ I don’t attraction … Their state is nary bully for a crushed … Your state stinks, and we don’t privation them successful our country,” helium said.

“These are radical who bash thing but complain,” Trump continued. “They complain, and from wherever they came from, they got thing … When they travel from hell, and they kick and bash thing but bitch, we don’t privation them successful our country. Let them spell backmost to wherever they came from and hole it.”

Last week, successful an code to the federation pursuing the shooting of 2 National Guard members, which near 1 dormant and different critically injured, Trump ordered that radical from 19 blacklisted countries who held US greenish oregon imperishable residency cards beryllium “re-examined”.

He past pivoted to the Somali assemblage successful Minnesota successful that address, saying, “Hundreds of thousands of Somalians are ripping disconnected our state and ripping isolated that erstwhile large state.”

US media reported connected Tuesday that an ICE cognition focused connected Somali communities successful the Minneapolis-St Paul country volition instrumentality spot successful the adjacent fewer days.

A expanse by ICE officers volition circular up undocumented radical for deportation, AP reported, citing a idiosyncratic acquainted with the plans.

At slightest 100 ICE agents are expected to flood the area. The New York Times, besides citing sources adjacent to the plan, said Somalis successful the process of seeking ineligible presumption could besides beryllium swept up.

Several states successful caller months person experienced ICE raids connected undocumented people, including Chicago, Houston, Miami, Los Angeles, Atlanta, New York City and Phoenix. By October, astatine slightest 527,000 radical had been deported from the US since the Trump medication took bureau successful January, according to the Department of Homeland Security.

In a station connected X connected Tuesday, Minnesota’s Governor Tim Walz slammed the program for Minneapolis, saying that portion the authorities welcomed enactment for prosecuting crime, “pulling a PR stunt and indiscriminately targeting immigrants is not a existent solution to a problem”.

City officials besides condemned President Trump’s onslaught connected the Somali assemblage astatine a property league connected Tuesday and promised not to cooperate with ICE agents conducting migrant checks.

“Obviously, this is simply a frightening infinitesimal for our Somali community,” Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey said, describing the imaginable determination arsenic “terrorising”.

“That’s not American. That’s not what we are about,” helium said. “To our Somali community, we emotion you, and we basal with you.”

Minneapolis City Council Member Jamal Osman, who came to the US from Somalia erstwhile helium was 14, said astatine the conference: “I cognize galore families are fearful … the metropolis of Minneapolis stands down you.”

“Somali Americans are present to stay,” helium added. “We emotion this state. We emotion this country. This is home. We’re not going anywhere.”

Yes. On November 21, Trump announced connected his Truth Social level that helium was “immediately” terminating Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for Somali immigrants successful Minnesota, referring to a programme designed to supply exigency refuge for radical whose countries are successful crisis. About 705 Somalis are connected that programme.

Without providing evidence, Trump claimed that “Somali gangs are terrorising the radical of that large State” and accused Governor Walz, without proof, of overseeing a authorities that had go a “hub of fraudulent wealth laundering activity”.

“Send them backmost to wherever they came from,” Trump said. “It’s OVER!

Trump’s accusations astir the Somali assemblage travel aft a blimpish activist, Christopher Rufo, published allegations of payment fraud against Somalis successful Minnesota successful a mag called City Journal connected November 19.

In the report, Rufo, citing unnamed “counterterrorism sources” and a constabulary detective, claimed that Somalis benefiting from US payment programmes were sending backmost immense amounts successful remittances to their country, and that immoderate of that wealth had ended up with al-Shabab, the al-Qaeda-linked equipped radical controlling immoderate agrarian parts of Somalia.

One of the programmes Rufo referred to was fraudulent – the privately funded, $300m Feeding Our Future foundation programme, which falsely claimed to beryllium feeding millions of children amid the COVID-19 situation but alternatively stole authorities funds.

Federal prosecutors person secured convictions for the ringleader, Aimee Bock, who is white, and respective Somali-Americans.

In July, Somalia became 1 of 12 countries whose citizens are taxable to a US question ban. It was likewise placed nether a question prohibition during the archetypal Trump administration.

Why has Trump targeted Ilhan Omar?

Trump besides made disparaging remarks astir Democratic congresswoman Omar successful his Tuesday attack, calling her “garbage”.

Omar, 43, who emigrated from Somalia to the US successful 1995 arsenic a child, has represented her Minnesota territory successful the US Congress since 2019 and is an outspoken professional of the Trump administration.

“She’s an incompetent person; she’s a existent unspeakable person,” Trump said connected Tuesday, adding without grounds that Omar “hates everybody” and is anti-Semitic.

Trump’s verbal attacks connected Omar are not new. The president has repeatedly criticised the representative, routinely picking connected her hijab and mode of dressing.

Omar deed backmost connected the latest of Trump’s latest comments connected Tuesday, saying: “His obsession with maine is creepy.”

His obsession with maine is creepy. I anticipation helium gets the assistance helium desperately needs. https://t.co/pxOpAChHse

— Ilhan Omar (@IlhanMN) December 2, 2025

Omar besides pushed backmost against claims that Minnesota funds person been diverted to al-Shabab oregon that Somali gangs are rife successful the state. “I situation you to travel guardant with grounds … if astatine each there’s any,” she said astatine a briefing past week. “You can’t victimise a full assemblage for the actions of a few.”

There are presently astir 260,000 radical of Somali descent residing successful the US, according to information from the US Census Bureau’s yearly American Community Survey. They are among the largest Somali communities extracurricular Somalia, with different large diaspora communities recovered successful the United Kingdom, the United Arab Emirates, Sweden and Canada.

Some Somalis arrived successful the US successful the 1960s arsenic students, aft the then-British Somaliland gained independence. Later, determination were larger waves of radical fleeing the troubled East African country’s protracted civilian war, which stemmed from equipped absorption to the subject authorities of dictator Mohamed Siad Barre. That lasted from 1988 until 2000, though the authorities continues to conflict rebel groups and equipped militants.

Most Somalis successful the US unrecorded successful Minnesota, wherever a fig of societal programmes are successful existence, peculiarly successful the Minneapolis-St Paul area, location to 63,000 radical of Somali descent. States similar Ohio (21,000), Washington (15,000), Virginia (3,953), Georgia (3,538), and California besides person important populations, according to the World Population Review.

How has the Somali diaspora fared successful the US?

Minneapolis hosts respective 100 Somali businesses, mostly successful retail and nutrient services and including restaurants, market stores and covering stores.

Somalis arriving successful the authorities during their autochthonal country’s civilian warfare often faced challenges with learning English, but were capable to instrumentality unskilled jobs, specified arsenic astatine meatpacking plants, according to a 2017 study by section work MinnPost.

As the assemblage grew, much Somalis branched into finance, wellness and acquisition sectors. They besides started getting into section politics. In 2019, Omar made past arsenic the archetypal Somali-American typical successful the US Congress.

The mean property of Somalis successful Minnesota is young astatine 19, according to a 2023 study by the Minnesota authorities government. Most (53,000) talk English with nonrecreational oregon constricted proficiency, but the radical besides has 1 of the lowest levels of acquisition attainment among overseas populations successful the state.

Somalis are often described arsenic progressive successful the labour force, though much Somali men are employed than women. Contrary to Trump’s claims that Somalis bash not enactment successful the US, astir 84 percent of antheral Somali refugees betwixt 25 and 64 years were employed successful the authorities of Kentucky compared to 64 percent of females, according to a 2016 study by the Kentucky Center for Economic Policy.

About 58 percent of Somalis successful Minnesota were calved successful the US. Of those calved abroad, astir 87 percent are naturalised citizens. Nearly fractional of that radical entered the US successful 2010 oregon later.

US authorities person successful the past struggled to forestall the recruitment of young Somali-American men by al-Shabab and different equipped groups. In 2007, much than 20 Somali-American men travelled to Somalia to articulation al-Shabab. However, lone a fewer cases person been reported since then. In September, a 23-year-old antheral successful Minnesota pleaded blameworthy to charges of attempting to articulation a designated equipped group.

Minneapolis has the astir vibrant Somali-American assemblage successful the nation. The City works each time to guarantee Minneapolis is simply a welcoming spot for all, careless of migration status. More: https://t.co/FYJkJO3ZXx pic.twitter.com/t2Y8LwDVoX

— City of Minneapolis (@CityMinneapolis) December 2, 2025