Following escalating criticism and even death threats from conservatives, Minnesota Rep. Ilhan Omar defended her love for America and pledged to fight for justice in a series of tweets on Saturday. Earlier this week, Omar faced mounting criticism…
Following escalating criticism and even death threats from conservatives, Minnesota Rep. Ilhan Omar defended her love for America and pledged to fight for justice in a series of tweets on Saturday. Earlier this week, Omar faced mounting criticism from conservatives regarding a speech in which she briefly discussed 9/11, prompting many social media users to rush to her defense under the hashtag #IStandWithIlhan.
Last month, while speaking at a banquet for the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), Omar argued that organizations like CAIR have worked hard to prevent Muslims across the U. S. from losing their rights and civil liberties following the actions of a small group of people. Fox News subsequently circulated an out-of-context comment from her speech — “some people did something” — to make it seem as though Omar was trivializing the nature of 9/11.
As a result, many conservatives described Omar as “un-American,” per The Daily Beast, and they threatened her with deportation and even murder. President Donald Trump went so far as to tweet a video of Omar’s speech alongside footage of 9/11, Vox reported, compelling Democratic lawmakers like Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Ayanna Pressley to slam the president for putting Omar in danger.
