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People of various faiths, ethnicities and racial backgrounds are gathering in Rochester Sunday in a show of solidarity with the Somali-American community there.

It’s the latest of several events in cities across Minnesota in a show of support for the Somali community after President Donald Trump’s racist and divisive comments about them this past week.

The Muslim Coalition of ISAIAH will host a community gathering and potluck in northwest Rochester on Sunday, Dec. 7 from 3 to 4 p.m., celebrating and honoring Somali culture and contributions.

Zeinab Hassan, 39, of Rochester, is an organizer from the Muslim Coalition of ISAIAH. She says Somali community members, especially children, are feeling scared and threatened by Trump’s hateful diatribe. Hassan says she was a young girl when she immigrated from Somalia with her family 30 years ago and hers was one of the first Somali families that settled in Rochester and planted roots here.

Hassan said that the bigoted and xenophobic rhetoric reminds many in the community members of similar anti-Muslim sentiment that arose in the aftermath of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. She said Trump’s rant makes it more difficult for many Somalis to feel as though they are a part of the broader community.

“We do belong here, like we want to be here,” Hassan said. “Some of us have bought homes, (we) do business, we’ve established so much here. I think the majority of us put more into living here in Rochester than our actual country. It’s (created) a lot of divided feelings.”

St. Cloud to counter the xenophobic and racist remarks made by Trump that targeted the state’s Somali communities.

 Though the vast majority of Somalis in Minnesota are U.S. citizens, the Trump administration also has threatened to revoke temporary protected status for hundreds of Somali immigrants living in the state. 

Immigration and Customs Enforcement actions in the Twin Cities and elsewhere have 

between federal law enforcement officers and some neighborhood watchers and protesters. The ICE actions have also heightened fear in Somali-American communities that have been well established across Minnesota for decades.

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State, city and faith leaders have publicly condemned the disparaging remarks. Even some Republicans 

who had been allies of Trump are now calling out the rhetoric.

Hassan says she hopes that the gathering In Rochester on Sunday will be “a starting point” for communities to come together and remind others that they do belong.

“I just had my second kid here a month ago,” she said, as she ponders her family’s future in Minnesota. “So I'm growing a family here myself. So what is the future of Rochester for my family? What is the future of Rochester for not just my kids, for all youth?”

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The Muslim Coalition of ISAIAH will host a community gathering and potluck in northwest Rochester on Sunday, Dec. 7 from 3 to 4 p.m. at 125 LIVE River Rooms on Elton Hill Drive, celebrating and honoring Somali culture and contributions.

Minnesotans rally, mobilize in solidarity with Somali-Americans after Trump’s xenophobic rant

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