By Adan Makina
Currently, there is a political fracas going on in the United States after President Donald Trump described the American Somali community in the US as garbage. While there are millions of illegal immigrants in the US, his hate for the Somali community has reached alarming proportions and it all evolved after Ilhan Omar exchanged verbal political differences in words and not in deeds. A female Somali in the US House of Representatives, Ilhan Omar who is a Democrat, is regarded an outspoken opposition member since she is opposed to the president’s Republican Party that is known for distancing itself from immigrants who are not White, Trump felt it was beyond his dignity to be challenged by a Black, African female Somali Muslim.
Even though Somalis in the US have made great leaps and bounds in the transportation industry especially heavy trucks that are responsible for the hauling of vital heavy delivery goods within the US, Canada, and Alaska, and the fastest money remittances across the globe, and also in the housing industry and the operations of malls and shops within Minesota and other states, in the medical and education fields, the taxi industry, and the operations of wholesale goods, Trump’s attempts to alienate the Somali community could have severe ramifications if drastic measures are not made to stabilize the current political stalemate. Somalis’ adherence to Islam enabled them to have mosques across the United States and to as far as Canada and Alaska in the Arctic and since Trump has a great hatred for Islam, he is opposed to Americans reverting to Islam at alarming proportions.
Trump’s attempts to distance himself with Islam and Somalis will eventually have severe repercussions because, it contravenes the American constitution that guarantees freedom of religion and speech. It has already been prognosticated by political and religious analysts that by 2050, the global population of Muslims and Christians will be equal and by 2070, Islam will take over as the religion with the largest followers and by 2090, Arabic will be the global language tossing aside English and French that have domineered the world for centuries. Unfortunately, many of us may not live to see it.
Going back to history and benefiting from the adage “we remember the past in order to make the present tolerable and the future worth waiting for” requires thorough historical exegesis for modern leaders especially President Donald Trump who appears to be on the wrong path when it comes to crucial governance that requires global political equality, embracing human rights, and general economic facilitations. From historical perspective, the world had seen the rise and fall of empires including Christian and Muslim empires and others. The Rise and Fall of the Roman Empire is a fascinating magnus opus that was authored by the famous English man Edward Gibbon. Starting as a Republic in c. 509 BCE then transforming into an empire in 27 BCE, in the end, it transformed into a historical empire in 117 CE under emperor Trajan when it crossed Europe, North Africa, and the Middle East. However, since that has a beginning has an end, invasions from the Goths and Vandals who were Germanic, sacked Rome several times until Romulus Augustulus was deposed in 476 CE.
Even though the Byzantine Empire survived for a thousand years, in the end, the Roman Empire that rose from scratch as a city/state suddenly collapsed in 1453 CE when the famous city of Constantinople fell to its toes. The names Byzantine or Byzantium arose from a small port on the Sea of Marmara on the northern side that was known as Byzantion in classical antiquity. Currently, it is the City of Istanbul.
Instead of looking at the political, social, and economic state of his own country that is already showing signs of societal breakdown, the President of the United States appears not being up to task to restore his nation’s sovereignty internally and globally. While Trump’s comments about Somalis sparked controversies across the globe, even prominent Catholic bishops in the US did not shy away from giving their points of views. Even though he did not name Trump, Bishop Daniel Garcia of Austin, Texas felt it was dehumanizing to pick on specific people, perhaps in reference to Somalis. In his statement, Garcia was reported to have said, “As Catholics, we believe that every person is beloved by God…” He continued by saying “language that denigrates a person or community based on his or her ethnicity or country of origin is incompatible with this truth…”[1]
The world reknown Muslim Imam and theologically-driven activist for human rights, Omar Suleiman, writing about Somalis, at first reminded the readers of the online magazine how Trump described African nations as “s-hole countries” and then further exposed how Somalis arrived the United States as refugees to “become the most civically engaged and socially productive Muslim communities in the country.”[2] It is a well-known and documented factor that Somalis contributed immensely to the economy of the United States especially to the State of Minnesota. According to Imam Omar Suleiman “Somali Minnesotans generate some $500 million in income annually and pay close to $67 million in state and local taxes every year, with an estimated $8 billion overall impact on the state’s economy.”
While it is legally acceptable as per the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) adopted by the General Assembly of the United Nations on December 10, 1948 to extend a helping hand to refugees, asylees, and immigrants seeking safety in any country, the Republican Party under Trump seems to have negative views about foreigners who are not White. Prior to Trump hurling epithets at Somalis living in the US and those residing in Somalia, Mexicans and Haitians got their share of derogatory insults. His hatred for specific people, their countries, and leaders appear to be emerging by the day.
It was during a cabinet meeting on December 2, 2025 when Donald Trump referred to Somalis as “garbage”. Synonymously equivalent in meaning to rubbish waste or garbage, it could also could be translated to mean worthless or meaningless, rubbish, nonsense or balderdash. It also means gobbledygook, hogwash, hooey, malarkey, poppycock and phooey. In reference to Somalis, Trump was reported to have said “we are going to go the wrong way if we keep taking in garbage into our country.” His use of the “go back” rhetoric was aimed at urging Somalis to “go back from where they came from and fix it.” His remarks have been condemned by civil rights groups, Democratic lawmakers, and community leaders as “racist” and “dangerous”.
His “go back’ rhetoric and ‘garbage” remarks appeared apprehensively palpable to most Somalis, especially those living in Cedar-Riverside that is known as Little Mogadishu for its large Somali population.[3] Despite having citizenship for decades, Somalis who get caught up in the cleansing by ICE are those who don’t speak English well. Trump’s disparaging comments about Somalis could be a harbinger for radicalization. The deriding public remarks of Donald Trump has been challenged by Somalis and advocacy groups who have joined hands to overcome the unconstitutional impositions on Somalis by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s decision to end providing Temporary Protected Status to Somalis. [4]
Another high-profile US-born figure of theological repute who was insulted by President Trump in mid-2026 is Pope Leo XIV. Referring to him as “weak on crime” and “terrible for foreign policy”, Muslims across the world felt perturbed and flabbergasted at such castigations at the head of Catholicism such that, even Somali Congresswoman Ilhan Omar came to the rescue of the Pope in a public address. Skeptical of Trump’s Christian faith, she also castigated Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth “who stated that the Pope had no place to lead the Catholic Church due to his unfitness to serve as its spiritual leader.”[5] Another insult to Somalis by Trump was the US denial to allow Somali international FIFA referee Omar Artan the right to enter the United States–an act that infuriated global lovers of sports. American leaders’ denigration of the Pope has already caused uproar among the followers of Catholicism and Christian sects together with Muslims who consider Christians as the “nearest in friendship to the believers” as stated in the Qur’an even though they are a specific sect of Christianity.
What turned the tables upside down for Trump and Hegseth is the Pope’s opposition to the US invasion of Iran and the stringent immigratory measures on Somalis and other people seeking protection against wars ignited by the United States and its allies. Because of national interest, using direct interventions or proxy wars by the United States and her allies in peaceful lands has been the major cause of the flow of refugees and immigrants across the world. Even though Trump perceives Iran as an enemy, there are millions of Americans living in the Middle East and the income they make and the peace they enjoy is far much better than what they would get in their states of origin. Prior to the 1979 Islamic revolution that toppled the Shah, approximately 40,000 Americans lived in Iran and they were mostly composed of oil industry workers, engineers, military advisors, teachers, and missionaries. They were mostly attracted to the country by Iran’s rapid modernization and lucrative petroleum sector. At the present time, known as Iranian-Americans or Persian-Americans, America is home to about 600,000 Diaspora Iranians. The Trump administration has caused immense sufferings to billions in the world and that is because, working in cahoots with corrupt foreign leaders from poor countries help America achieve its major aims and objectives of gaining what it wants most.
The Temporary Protected Status for Somalis was expected to end on March 17, 2026. In scholarly and academic studies, the negative utterances of Trump are considered as generalization. Even the use of “third world countries” by some of the press and other media houses appear out of context for the era of “first world”, “second world”, and “third world” have been replaced by Global North and Global South. While Trump’s derogatory remarks have been supported by those close to him, majority of Americans who disagree with him on many political issues, seem to be in support of Somalis.
The president appears to be against the massive influx of refugees fleeing civil wars mostly from Africa especially the citizens of Somalia and other countries who have been regarded persona non grata in the US. While the Temporary Protected Status (TPS) has been there for some time under the leaderships of Democratic and Republican leaders of the US, under Trump, it could be completely cancelled for good to dissuade further movement of immigrants to the US. While past leaders have been fearful of immigrants from Latin American countries especially Mexico leading to the construction of a massive wall in the southern US border especially in the State of Texas, the current stalemate between Trump and Ilhan has caused immense fear among the Somali community that is concentrated in the State of Minnesota.
A recent and shocking revelation seems to be coming from a group of African leaders who convened to oppose American involvement in their affairs militarily and economically. With America being thrown to the dogs, it appears that China is filling the vacuum. Most of these African leaders oppose loud and clear regarding US interference in all aspects. Trump’s desire to control Africa appears to be breaking down since Africa has chosen to take a different way and that is Africa is not willing to withstand American influence of all sorts regardless of whether it is economic, industrial or military cooperation. African leaders have chosen economic independence, control over their resources, moving away from dependency towards self-sufficiency, overcoming neocolonialism, and systematic policy reforms.
Unlike China that is for economic emancipation to develop the African continent, the US under Trump appears to be suffering backlashes from major African societies. African nations like Algeria, Egypt, Ghana, Kenya, South Africa, Senegal, Uganda, Ethiopia, Nigeria, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Morocco, and others have chosen to turn down every American deal that has been defined as a form of neocolonialism. Refusing visas to Africans is another factor that is causing alarm among many African nations. The assumption that only Americans are responsible for moving America to a forward progress are pathological lies. The best students in American colleges and universities are Africans as claimed by an American press recently. Nigerians alone can be found in the colleges and universities of America’s fifty states and one territory. There are five permanently inhabited American territories with Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands located in the Carribean and American Samoa, Guam, and the Northern Mariana Islands considered Pacific Territories.
South Africans have voted for their country to be part and parcel of the BRICS nations. With America losing credibility in Africa, what could be expected is economic strangulation for the United States and accelerated economic growth for Africa, China, and Russia together with others like Taiwan, Japan, Indonesia, Singapore, India, Pakistan, Malaysia, and Taiwan. While the world has seen the demise of Pax Romana and Pax Britannica, in the meantime, what is to be expected is the collapse of Pax Americana. Some theological analysts are of the view that President Donald Trump is a God-sent man whose mission is to destroy America’s past greatness militarily, socially, politically, and economically. From general perspective, America is no longer the sole superpower because China has already taken over as the number one leader in political, social, economic, and military global leadership with the US falling to the second slot followed by Russia and Iran that is considered an emerging superpower.
With America expected to withdraw from the Persian Gulf especially the Strait of Hormuz, obviously, the entire world will be overtaken by celebratory mood. Abandoned by her NATO allies and other foreign forces that were in support of America for many years, America is no longer a superpower to be counted on. Having abandoned the Islamabad reconciliation conference in Pakistan, Iran has categorically rejected American domineering fallacies that appeared to bear no fruits. Even though reconciliation between the US and Iran is ongoing, the end result will give Iran leverage in all aspects. Regardless of Trump referring to Somalis as “garbage”, it has already been prognosticated by political observers and political analysts that the long awaited “Greater Somalia” that is known as “Soomaali Weyn” in Somali, will evolve after 2032. Greater Somalia will eventually incorporate missing Somali territories such that Greater Somali will become the biggest country in the Horn of Africa.
Adan Makina
WardheerNews
Email: adan.makina@gmail.com
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References:
[1] Gina Christian (December 6, 2025). USSCB’s racial justice chair discourages ‘dehumanizing language’ after Trump Somali comments. Retrieved on March 13, 2026 from www.ncronline.org.
[2] Omar Suleiman, Opinion (December 9, 2025). Somalis are not ‘garbage.’ They are a gift that all Americans should treasure. Retrieved on March 13, 2026 from www.ncronline.org.
[3] Brandon Drenon (5 December, 2025). ‘Not becoming of a president’: Somali-Americans respond to Trump’s ‘garbage’ remarks. Retrieved on March 13, 2026 from www.bbc.com.
[4] Nate Raymond (10 March, 2026). Lawsuit challenges Trump Administration’s ending of protections for Somalis. Retrieved on March 13, 2026 from www.cnbcafrica.com.
[5] Terra Watts (April 17, 2026). Rep. Ilhan Omar Calls Out President Donald Trump, Pete Hegseth for Attacking the Pope: “They Are Far From People of Faith.”