Our nation observed Independence Day earlier this month, and so did another nation: Somalia.
To celebrate, Somali-born Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., took the stage at an event for her home district’s Somali Week.
She walked onstage to speak before a concert, and, according to viral videos on social media, she struggled to talk over the crowd’s booing.
“OK, OK, OK, OK, OK, we don’t have all night,” Omar said, in an apparent attempt to quiet the crowd.
“Don’t do this,” one person onstage told the audience.
The crowd continued to boo the far-left “Squad” leader.
“Get out,” one person said. “Get the f— out of here,” said another.
One Snapchat user took a video of the incident, and the Twitter user @LibsOfTikTok tweeted it to her 1.3 million followers.
“They don’t like ilhan… Booo” the Snapchat user wrote in a caption, along with the laugh-cry emoji. “They won’t even let ilhan talk.”
Oddly enough, Omar herself tweeted a 14-second video of the incident, including the jeers at the end.
Take a look —
Ilhan Omar got booed onstage at a concert featuring Somali singer Soldaan Seraar in Minnesota last night.
People in the crowd chanted "Get out!" & shouted "Get the f*ck out of here!". pic.twitter.com/sggii7h6sO— Leftism (@LeftismForU) July 3, 2022
https://twitter.com/libsoftiktok/status/1543669629054136320?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1543669629054136320%7Ctwgr%5E%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Ftownhall.com%2Ftipsheet%2Fmattvespa%2F2022%2F07%2F04%2Filhan-omar-being-booed-offstage-is-a-tremendous-fourth-of-july-gift-n2609714
It was an honor to welcome you to our incredible city. pic.twitter.com/mM77ZLVCYo
— Ilhan Omar (@IlhanMN) July 3, 2022
According to Newsweek, Omar had walked onstage to present an award to the musician, Somali singer Suldaan Seeraar, during his first performance in the U.S.
“It was an honor to welcome you to our incredible city,” she told the singer in a tweet.
It remains unclear exactly why the audience members were jeering at Omar. Some viewers have speculated that the crowd simply wanted hear music from the main act.
Sure enough, the audience cheered when Omar mentioned the name of the singer.
Still, Omar has seen her popularity plummet in her home district after only three years in office, despite representing a D+26 district.
In 2020, she ran 15.7 points behind President Joe Biden. Her margin of victory was 9.7 points lower than Hillary Clinton’s margin of victory in her district four years earlier.
Plus, more to the point, she was booed by some of her own constituents.
Omar, a Somali American, represents a district known for its Somali population. If she wins the primary election on Aug. 9, then she will likely advance to a general election against Republican candidate Shukri Abdirahman, also a former Somali refugee.
“So Much To Be Proud Of,” Abdirahman tweeted from her campaign account. “Somalis savagely booed Ilhan O.”
The Horn editorial team