Trump’s attacks on Ilhan Omar aim to stoke fears ahead of the 2020 election
Trump and Republicans are using Omar to drive a wedge within the Democratic party and ‘foment hatred of Muslim Americans’
When Ilhan Omar became one of the first two Muslim women elected to Congress in November, the American Muslim community saw her victory as a symbolic rejoinder to Donald Trump.
Omar’s remarkable journey – from a Somali refugee camp to the Minnesota state legislature and the hallways of the US Capitol – stood out among a historically diverse class of freshman lawmakers. The sight of Omar’s hijab on the House floor, made possible only by a rules change that for the first time in 181 years allowed religious headwear inside the chamber, reinforced the immediacy of her impact.