Somalis who voted for Trump sharing their thoughts

Somali community urges Trump to visit MN

Some of the Somali community is urging President Donald Trump to visit Minnesota and meeting the community. FOX 9's Leon Purvis has the latest.

MINNEAPOLIS (FOX 9) - The Somali community in Minnesota is grappling with fear and uncertainty following recent comments by President Donald Trump and targeted operations by ICE agents.

Community response to the president's comments

What they're saying:

Many in the Somali community are expressing their distress over the president's remarks. 

"It feels very bad. Actually. We want to tell the president we're not a garbage actually, we smell really good," said Farhio Khalif. This sentiment is shared by many who feel stressed and fearful about the situation. Khalif added, "I think a lot of the community are very much really stressed out what's happening and really been we will call the word fearful, about afraid, why this is taking place in the Somali community."

Despite the tension, members of the community are defending their contributions, highlighting the presence of hardworking individuals, including doctors, lawyers, and entrepreneurs.

Impact on local businesses

Local perspective:

The situation has also affected local businesses, particularly at Karmel Mall, considered the heart of the Somali community. Waris Mohamud, a business owner, shared the challenges he faced, noting a drop in foot traffic. 

"We had a hard time for our business, even as you see, no one is entering the mall. So we are devastated, really what our president is doing," said Mohamud.

Interestingly, some Somali business owners, like Mohamud, who voted for Trump, still stand by their decision. 

"I voted for the reason he said, 'I'm gonna make America great again.' So we don't wanna our president, you know, saying all the Somalis they are bad, we're not bad," she said.

Some in the Somali community encourage Trump to come to Minnesota to see what they’re about. 

Also, Wednesday night, staff at nearby Hola Arepa tells FOX 9 ICE agents showed up. Workers say no one was arrested. They also told us ICE showed up there Tuesday as well.