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WAs Donald Trump began to target Ilhan Omar and other progressive colored women, victims of racist attacks, demanding that they leave the country, Erica Mauter knew she had to counter his dangerous message.
"Yes [Trump] would let this message resonate and resonate with him, then if she actually returned home to Minnesota, we will welcome her, "said Mauter, who lives in the Fifth District of the state, what Omar represents . "We wanted to say that we miss her and want her to continue doing what she is doing."
Mauter was one of 150 supporters who praised Omar, one of the first two Muslim women to sit in Congress, when she arrived home from Washington on Thursday, a day after the president inflicted a theatrical twist at a rally that culminated in his supporters chanting: "Send it back! Send her!
This racist rallying cry – to which Trump later tried to distance himself – marked the culmination of nearly a week of bigoted debates, beginning with tweets calling on Omar, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Ayanna Pressley and Rashida Tlaib to "go back and help repair the totally devastated and infested places of the crimes from which they came".
Omar is an American citizen born in Somalia. The other three legislators were born in the United States. All four have been harsh critics of Trump, particularly on immigration.
Trump's comments and the racist slogans of his supporters sparked widespread criticism and official reprimand by the Democrats. But Republicans have offered silence, slight criticism or even total defense.
"We all know that [the lawmakers] are a band of communists, "said Senator Lindsey Graham, one of the Capitol Hill's top supporters. "They hate their own country."
While Trump and his allies attacked Omar and the rest of the so-called anti-American "squad", Mauter and others went to the Minneapolis airport to show solidarity – and to send a message that the electors of Omar retrieved it.
"Her district is totally behind her," Mauter told The Guardian.
Omar, 37, arrived in the United States as a refugee from Somalia in 1992 and became a US citizen in 2000. She was elected in 2018 to serve Minnesota's most diverse district, covering Minneapolis and some of her suburbs. . the most progressive democrats in Washington.
But she also faced criticism, particularly for her language in messages intended to control US policy on Israel. Omar apologized for using expressions such as "everything about the Benjamins", described as anti-Semitic. Many critics have been in bad faith. Trump has spread several lies, including a far-right conspiracy theory that she was married to her brother and claimed that she is a sympathizer of terrorism.
"President Trump's statements against Congressman Ilhan Omar and his colleagues are racist," Guardian Abdi Warsame, a member of the Minneapolis city council, told Guardian.
"Every citizen of the United States who utters these words is ashamed of our country. This adds to the long list of things that President Trump has done that tarnish the legitimacy of our highest office both domestically and abroad. "
"She has bold ideas"
Faced with the attack of Omar, supporters of her district, which she won with 78% of the vote in 2018, rallied behind her.
"What's going on right now is so horrible that it's so important to stay in solidarity with it," said Rita Farmer, a resident of Northeast Minneapolis's fifth district. "Not only to send him a message that we support him, but also for the rest of the world that we support him.
Trump's crowd at his rally in North Carolina on Wednesday. Photography: Jonathan Drake / Reuters
"This support will not go away. On the contrary, these recent attacks against her only reinforce it. "
Omar grew up in Minneapolis, which has a large Somali and East African community. His district includes Little Mogadishu, the base of the Somali community in Minneapolis, and was previously elected Keith Ellison, the first Muslim to sit in Congress, who is now Attorney General.
For Farmer, the "appalling" attacks of Trump must be called. But the fact that Omar has continued to focus on her program, including support for Medicare for All, which she touted at a city hall on Thursday night in Minneapolis, has made Farmer "So much more proud to defend it".
"People are not right by his side for symbolic reasons," said Farmer. "She has the policy proposals. She has the bold ideas to back it up. That's what really excites people and makes them come back. "
Erica Mauter was encouraged by the community rally. But the president's attacks cooled her, raising concerns about the safety of the member – and her own.
"He put a target on his back," said Mauter. "I am a black woman – it can be me."
On Friday, Trump abandoned his attempt to stand out from racist singing, praising the North Carolina crowd as "incredible people" and "incredible patriots".
Some badysts suggest that he has at least partly sought to exploit divisions between Democrats. But the party is held together.
Mara Glubka, a citizen of the fifth politically active district, told the Guardian that she had presented Thursday at the airport because she and other voters They felt obliged to "defend" their representative.
"It's really good," she said, testifying to "love and enthusiasm" for Omar.
Glubka, who is trans, said the member had been strong on LGBTQ issues and had kept the promises made to voters. Trump's attacks only seemed to strengthen his support.
"I'm proud of Ilhan Omar," said Glubka. "If a" dismissal "occurs, he will return it to the United States Congress."
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