On Dec. 2, Pres. Donald Trump spewed a string of invectives against Somali Americans in Minnesota. He referred to our Somali neighbors as “garbage.”
During a Cabinet meeting, in which he appeared to doze off at times, Trump said, in reference to Somali immigrants in Minnesota: “We’re going to go the wrong way if we keep taking in garbage into our country. Ilhan Omar is garbage. She’s garbage. These are people that do nothing but complain.”
Trump, who has characterized African nations as “shithole countries,” added, regarding Somalis in Minnesota, “When they come from hell and they complain and do nothing but bitch, we don’t want them in our country. Let them go back to where they came from and fix it.”
A New York Times story about the president’s tirade noted, “Even for Mr. Trump — who has a long history of insulting Black people, particularly those from African countries — his outburst was shocking in its unapologetic bigotry. And it comes as he started a new ICE operation targeting Somalis in the Minneapolis-St. Paul region.”
Yes, the masked federal immigration police that have already created fear and chaos in Los Angeles, Chicago and other cities are descending on the Twin Cities. And Trump’s derogatory comments follow on a directive from the Department of Homeland Security that Somali immigrants will have their Temporary Protective Status (TPS) revoked. This reportedly will affect some 430 Somalis in Minnesota; around 95 percent of Somali immigrants and their descendants are United States citizens.
In reporting on Trump’s intemperate remarks, CNN noted that Trump, during his Oct. 10, 2019, rally at Target Center in Minneapolis (I covered the spectacle), decried the settlement of Somali refugees in Minnesota. “For many years, leaders in Washington brought large numbers of refugees to your state from Somalia without considering the impact on schools and communities and taxpayers,” he said. Trump’s invocation of Somalis and Rep. Omar elicited loud boos from the crowd at the rally.
Many will recall that, during his first term as president, Trump sought to ban immigration to the U.S. from a number of Muslim-majority countries.
Apparently, the ICE thugs and other federal cops have landed here, as per a Dec. 3 statement from members of the Minneapolis area legislative delegation:
Yesterday, the federal government unleashed terror on our community by abducting residents. ICE was seen in our neighborhoods, taking away vital members of our community. Residents across our city are now living in fear of targeted violence that makes us all less safe.
Donald Trump has used his platform to target members of our beloved Somali community. Because Donald Trump does not have any ideas to solve the affordability issues plaguing our communities, he can only try to distract from them by pitting Minnesotans against one another. Once again, his actions have no basis in reality or facts. The vast majority of Somali Minnesotans are citizens or permanent residents; his demands will not accomplish his goal. But once again, his words will inflame tensions, fuel racism, and endanger our neighbors.
As the Minneapolis Delegation, we reject these efforts to sow division and terrorize our city. Somali Minnesotans are an essential and cherished part of our city and state. We cannot, and do not want to, imagine a Minneapolis without our Somali residents. They are our neighbors, family members, elected officials, doctors, teachers, and more. No matter what lies and bile Donald Trump spews about Minnesota’s Somali community, the simple truth is that our Somali neighbors make our state stronger. In the coming days, we will do everything we can to protect each other from this hostile federal government intent on dividing us.
Also, the Jewish Community Relations Council of Minnesota and the Dakotas (JCRC) sent a statement on Dec. 3 condemning Trump’s remarks about the Minnesota Somali community.
“That is dehumanization — and when such language comes from elected leaders, ideas that should remain at the extreme margins of society are pulled into the civic mainstream,” the statement declared and continued:
Minnesota’s Somali community — like all communities — is diverse, complex, and not a monolith. Treating any group as one undifferentiated mass is itself a form of dehumanization.
As Jews, we carry the memory of what happens when people are spoken about as less than human. Our history is scarred by moments when Jews were depicted as filth, vermin or disease. In our present, Zionists and Jews are dehumanized in public discourse. These echoes cannot be ignored.
Jewish tradition insists that every person is created b’tzelem Elohim — in the image of God. The rabbis teach that to degrade a single human being is to diminish what is sacred in us all.
Dehumanization is not merely offensive; it is dangerous. Across history and in our own time, treating human beings as “garbage” clears the psychological path toward violence. Before people are harmed, they are dehumanized.
The JCRC statement also referenced “appalling fraud schemes in Minnesota,” an apparent reference to the Feeding Our Future scandal that resulted in dozens of convictions of mainly Somali American offenders. Trump has characterized this fraud as involving “billions” of dollars, and his MAGA disciples have parroted his words. In reality, the criminal schemes to divert federal funds meant to feed impoverished local children during the pandemic amounted to around $250 million. Further, it was a white woman, Aimee Bock, who founded the Feeding Our Future organization that enlisted local Somalis to perpetrate the large scale fraud. In March, at the conclusion of a jury trial in Minneapolis federal court, Bock was convicted on seven felony charges.
A profligate liar with no moral center, Trump seems to be deteriorating mentally at an escalating pace. In recent days he has lashed out at female reporters, responding to questions with ad hominem attacks. “Quiet, piggy,” he told a White House correspondent aboard Air Force One. When CBS News White House correspondent Nancy Cordes asked a question about the vetting of an Afghan refugee accused in the recent shooting of two National Guard troops in Washington, D.C., Trump responded, “Are you stupid? Are you a stupid person?”
I’m not a psychologist, but there is a condition referred to as “social disinhibition syndrome,” which generally is applied to children who are acting out. However, the disinhibition syndrome also is applied to adults. A 1996 paper from doctors associated with the International Psychogeriatric Association noted that patients with “disinhibition syndrome behave impulsively and inappropriately. They may be easily distracted, emotionally labile, have poor insight and judgment, and be unable to maintain previous levels of social behavior.” Another symptom of disinhibition is “verbal aggression.”
The worsening behavior we see in Trump might be a marker for dementia, according to scientists.
It is sad to see our elderly friends and relatives succumbing to decline related to dementia or Alzheimer’s. In the case of the U.S. president, such a condition should trigger alarms and flashing red lights. This unhinged person uttering vile epithets against our fellow citizens and demeaning those in his orbit has access to the nuclear launch codes.
Someone needs to stage an intervention.
Mordecai Specktor / editor [at] ajwnews [dot] com
(American Jewish World, December 2025)
