Ilhan Omar claims her son was questioned by ICE in Minnesota, raising racial profiling concerns

MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA: Rep Ilhan Omar said on Sunday, December 14, that federal immigration agents pulled over her son in Minnesota and asked him to prove his US citizenship.

Omar said that the encounter ended after her son showed his passport, but described the stop as part of a broader pattern of racial profiling targeting Somali Americans. 

The incident comes as federal immigration enforcement has intensified in the Twin Cities region. Omar has accused the Trump administration of fueling fear within Minnesota's Somali community. 

Ilhan Omar claims ICE stop raises concern about racial profiling 

In an interview with 'WCCO Sunday Morning' with Esme Murphy, Omar said the incident occurred on Saturday, after her son stopped at a Target store. 

"Yesterday, after he made a stop at Target, he did get pulled over by [US Immigration and Customs Enforcement] agents, and once he was able to produce his passport ID, they did let him go," Omar said. 

Omar added that her son, a US citizen, routinely carries his passport with him.

The congresswoman said that the traffic stop was not an isolated event. She also alleged that ICE agents had previously entered a mosque where her son and others were praying, though she said agents left without incident.

Omar said those experiences have heightened her concerns for her son's safety. 

"I had to remind him just how worried I am, because all of these areas that they are talking about are areas where he could possibly find himself in and they are racially profiling, they are looking for young men who look Somali that they think are undocumented," she said. 

ICE surge in Twin Cities and the president's backlash 

Earlier this month, federal agents had increased their presence in the Twin Cities, stating that their focus was on targeting undocumented Somali immigrants.

The surge followed comments from President Donald Trump, who said he did not "want them in our country," and referred to Omar as "garbage."  

On Friday, Omar sent a letter to Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem and ICE Acting Director Todd Lyons, accusing federal agents of "blatant racial profiling" and "an egregious level of unnecessary force" during operations in Minnesota. 

Omar argued that the enforcement surge was politically motivated.

"It is clear to me that this surge came in direct response to Trump's racist comments about Somali people, and about me in particular," she said in her letter to the federal authorities. 

According to US Census Bureau Data, Minnesota is home to the largest Somali population in the United States.

Omar has previously noted that more than 90% of Somali Americans are US citizens. Omar, herself was born in Somalia, arrived in the US as a child and became a citizen in 2000.