A biography for Ilhan Omarhasn’t been written yet.
“When I first arrived in the country, I really didn't speak much of the language. I knew two words coming here, and they were 'Hello' and 'Shut up.'”
“I know what it feels like to be a young family looking for opportunity in the United States.”
“This country gave us hope. This country allowed for us to develop our own identity and to create our own home. And we should not look down on the next person that is trying to do that.”
“I am not a Somali representative. I am not a Muslim representative. I am not a millennial representative. I am not a woman representative. I am a representative who happens to have all of these marginalized identities and can understand the intersectionality of all of them in a very unique way.”
“I was a teenager when 9/11 happened. And I really was uncomfortable with many members of our community feeling like they had to strip themselves of their identity in order to mitigate the violence and the fears that they were feeling.”
“I know how it feels to be hated because of my religious beliefs.”
“I have been very fortunate to have a partner who really stepped up and have wonderful children who do a lot of things that make it easy for Mommy to do this work.”
“I am proof that, as Americans, we can embrace our differences.”
“Since 2011, I am happy to say that I have reconciled with Ahmed Hirsi; we have married in our faith tradition and are raising our family together. Like all families, we have had our ups and downs, but we are proud to have come through it together.”
“I think it is really important when we're talking about fiscal responsibility that we are balancing the budget in ways that really benefit the working people and Americans.”
“No Minnesotan should ever experience preventable health risks from breathing polluted air or from drinking unsafe water.”
“I want my children to attend inclusive schools where diversity is respected and acknowledged as a sign of strength.”
“Hope will be found by understanding that diversity is the essence of the American Dream and why we need each other to fulfill it.”
“My kids are the reason I continue to strive for something better. They know - as kids who are Muslim, Somali, black Americans - that they've always been part of a struggle and that change isn't easy.”
“Insinuations that Ahmed Nur Said Elmi is my brother are absurd and offensive.”
“Minnesota's diversity should be its greatest strength, but our neglect of nonwhite students has stifled our progress toward growth and equity.”
“I come from people who dreamed of a free democratic system. I believe so strongly in the process and equal access.”
“When I was coming to this country, I heard about its promises.”
“I was always made aware of inequality in society, that there was a class system. In Somalia, we have clan structures. My mother's family is ethnically not Somali, and so we spoke often about what it meant to be 'other' in that way.”
“I invited President Trump twice now to come meet my family and my community because he seems to have a lot of opinions about the kind of people we are.”