Alex O.G.

Minnesota Republicans are running campaign ads linking Somalis to crime, fraud, and violence. Meanwhile, Minnesota has witnessed some of the most horrific acts of violence in recent memory, including the murder of young children at Annunciation Catholic School and the assassination of former House Speaker Melissa Hortman and her husband. Both crimes were committed by white individuals. And Minnesota's biggest fraud scandal, Feeding Our Future, was led by a white woman. Yet nobody is running campaign ads blaming white Minnesotans for those crimes. And rightly so. When politicians turn the crimes of individuals into an indictment of an entire ethnic community, they're revealing far more about themselves than about the people they're attacking. Keep running those ads. We see exactly what you're doing. And we won't forget it. Elections come and go. Politicians rise and fall. The political attacks will eventually fade. But Somalis will still be here. And we will come out of this stronger, more united, more organized, more politically aware, and more determined than ever to stand up for ourselves and shape our own future.