Every student has something to offer, and every student deserves a nurturing learning environment.
Ilhan Omar
Hope will be found by understanding that diversity is the essence of the American Dream and why we need each other to fulfill it.
As an immigrant, I truly believed when I was coming to this country that people had the tools necessary to life to live a life that is prosperous, that is just and free. So, every single day, I am shocked with the hypocrisy of this country. That we are the wealthiest nation in the world. But we cannot figure out how to house our homeless people.
I am much more interested in defending my ideas than defending my identities.
I will never apologize for standing up against oppression and injustice in Israel or anywhere else.
Our immigration policy should be based in compassion and a desire to help the other.
We must see others' struggles as our own, and their success as our success, so we can speak to our common humanity.
I believe women and minorities often wait for permission to be invited to something; we need to stop doing that.
If we are not actively fighting against regressive ideologies, we are contributing to making them grow.
I've always said you get what you organize for.
Truly, this is a nation that sees itself as one that instills hope and is really about allowing people to pursue their dreams.
One night, militia tried to break into our home, and the exterior was riddled with bullets.
I was always made aware of inequality in society, that there was a class system. In Somalia, we have clan structures. My mother's family is ethnically not Somali, and so we spoke often about what it meant to be 'other' in that way.
American hate is not new - and it is not scarce.
Israel is an ally of the United States, and I think as much as you would look to your neighbor to your friends to live out the same values as you are, we want to make sure that our allies are living out the same values that we push for here.
When people were selling the politics of fear and division and destruction, we were talking about hope. We were talking about the politics of joy.
The house I was born in in Somalia was right next to a big market. A lot of beggars or panhandlers would be in front of our house constantly, and my grandfather and grandmother would always invite them in to have food with us and have them take whatever was left over.
Here in Minnesota, we don't only welcome immigrants; we send them to Washington.
I am committed to growing participation in the political process and doing it the right way.
Many in the Somali community are excited to vote and support candidates who have shown an ability to lead with integrity and not use props and gatekeepers to get their votes.
I think being an immigrant makes me overly optimistic.
I think it is really important when we're talking about fiscal responsibility that we are balancing the budget in ways that really benefit the working people and Americans.
No Minnesotan should ever experience preventable health risks from breathing polluted air or from drinking unsafe water.
I'm going from the state House to the opportunity to serve in Congress and serve the people in the Fifth, which is a great honor and a great opportunity... It is something that is exciting to a few people, but, you know, often times it is important for us to own the moment, celebrate it, and then move on.
I want to go to Washington to make sure we really have an opportunity to expand health care for folks so that is accessible to them.
The one percent must pay their fair share.
I am proof that, as Americans, we can embrace our differences.
In just my own neighborhood, you can't go one block without seeing a sign that says, you know, 'Everyone's welcome here,' 'Refugees are welcome here.' I love my Muslim neighbors, and so there is truly this spirit of generosity and compassion and openness that still exists.
My kids are the reason I continue to strive for something better. They know - as kids who are Muslim, Somali, black Americans - that they've always been part of a struggle and that change isn't easy.
We need to recognize that racism has never been subtle, though it has gone underreported.
When I talk about places like Saudi Arabia or Israel or even now with Venezuela, I'm not criticizing the people. I'm not criticizing their faith. I'm not criticizing their way of life.
I am not a Somali representative. I am not a Muslim representative. I am not a millennial representative. I am not a woman representative. I am a representative who happens to have all of these marginalized identities and can understand the intersectionality of all of them in a very unique way.
This is a land of immigrants, and most come here for opportunity, a second chance.
ICE has only become increasingly militarized, brutal, and unaccountable.
I look forward to being a voice of reason in fighting for transparent and accountable budgets.
I talk all the time about the eight-year-old me and all the eight-year-olds who are living in their camps.
It's our time to fight for the America we know we can have.
We didn't really grow up in a gendered environment. We didn't have a hierarchy. My family is fearless. They truly believe that they have something to contribute to society and that it is an obligation as humans. I try to embed in my children that they have something to contribute. And that you give because you have to, not to be appreciated.
I believe in the ideals of America, in liberty, justice, and the pursuit of happiness.
I invited President Trump twice now to come meet my family and my community because he seems to have a lot of opinions about the kind of people we are.
Life in Somalia before the civil war was beautiful. When the war happened, I was 8 years old and at that stage of understanding the world in a different way.
I have a duty to teach my people about their rights and protect them from being bamboozled.
Fighting gerrymandering is one thing. The other thing is insuring we have the right candidates for the people and not the right candidates for the Party.
I want my children to attend inclusive schools where diversity is respected and acknowledged as a sign of strength.
I know what it feels like to be a young family looking for opportunity in the United States.
Learning is not limited to the classroom, and Minnesota shouldn't limit its education resources there, either.
We have people who will take votes that they can't defend. They'll say they stand for a policy, but when it comes to vote for it, they won't take the vote.
Since 2011, I am happy to say that I have reconciled with Ahmed Hirsi; we have married in our faith tradition and are raising our family together. Like all families, we have had our ups and downs, but we are proud to have come through it together.
I'm not easily scared; from the age of 8, I learned what it means to have everything you know taken away and what it means to persevere. I approach politics the same way.
We can walk and chew gum at the same time. Yes, the American people want us to legislate, they want us to insist on furthering their set of values, but they also want us to resist and exercise our oversight powers.
