Holding my breath: Fear in Ottawa after Trump tirade against Somali immigrants

Ottawa·NewSomali-Canadians living in Ottawa are condemning U.S. President Donald Trump’s tirade against Somali immigrants and their country, saying it has stoked fear and concern within the local community.About 10,500 people of Somali ethnic or cultural origin live in Ottawa, according to 2021 censusJodie Applewaithe · CBC News · Posted: Dec 06, 2025 4:00 AM EST | Last Updated: 32 minutes agoListen to this articleEstimated 5 minutesThe audio version of this article is generated by text-to-speech, a technology based on artificial intelligence.Somali Canadians are reacting after U.S. President Donald Trump called Somali immigrants ‘garbage’ who ‘contribute nothing’ to the country during a cabinet meeting Tuesday. (Julia Demaree Nikhinson/The Associated Press)Somali Canadians living in Ottawa have condemned U.S. President Donald Trump’s tirade against Somali immigrants and their country, saying it has stoked fear and concern within the local community.Trump’s invective came during a cabinet meeting Tuesday, soon after reports that federal authorities were preparing a targeted immigration enforcement operation in Minnesota focused on Somalis living illegally in the U.S.Trump called Somali immigrants “garbage” who “contribute nothing” to the U.S. and said “I don’t want them in our country.”He specifically disparaged Minnesota’s large Somali population saying, “I see these people ripping it off.”The same day Trump made the remarks, his administration said it paused all immigration applications filed by immigrants from 19 non-European countries, citing concerns over national security and public safety. Those countries included Somalia.Ottawa, like Minnesota, has a large Somali population and Trump’s derogatory comments have stirred the community. About 10,500 people of Somali ethnic or cultural origin live in the city according to the 2021 census, which does not account for anyone who would have arrived in the last four years.Many Somalis fled to Canada and the U.S. from the east African country to escape conflict, extremism and an ongoing civil war.“I feel like for myself, watching it from the outside here, I felt like I was kind of holding my breath,” said Asli Mahdi, a Somali Canadian born in Ottawa. “Especially those who are living in Minnesota, I imagine many folks may have been holding their breath too.”Abdirizak Mohamud, a Somali Canadian who lives in Ottawa, said hearing the insults “is quite alarming for Somali families both in the U.S. and Canada.”“It really kind of generates a lot of fear,” he said. “It is extremely reckless and it’s very dangerous.”Abdirizak Mohamud, who lives in Ottawa, is concerned about his family and friends living in Minnesota in the wake of Trump’s insults. (Submitted by Abdirizak Mohamud)Mohamud, who has family and friends living in Minnesota and other areas of the U.S., worries the president’s language and attitude towards Somalis could spread and cause more widespread harm. “I know that this hate that we’re hearing doesn’t know boundaries,” he said. “I’m worried for my relatives in the United States, but I’m also worried for [the] community here because this kind of hate will cross borders.”Trump tirade, ICE operation stoking fearOn Thursday, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) announced arrests in an immigration enforcement operation underway in Minneapolis.The federal agency named and described 12 people arrested since the operation began Monday. Five of those people are from Somalia, according to a media release from the agency.U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) launched an immigration enforcement operation in Minneapolis on Monday. (Tony Gutierrez/The Associated Press)This enforcement operation comes a month after Trump announced he would terminate temporary protected status, a legal safeguard against deportation, for Somali migrants in Minnesota.In a statement to CBC News Thursday, an ICE spokesperson denied anyone would be targeted on the basis of race or ethnicity.“What makes someone a target of ICE is not their race or ethnicity, but the fact that they are in the country illegally,” the statement read. This kind of hate will cross borders,- Abdirizak Mohamud, Somali CanadianYet, there is alarm among the Somali community in the wake of Trump’s insults.“I know many of us are very concerned and calling our relatives,” Mohamud said.Warsame J. Warsame, another Somali Canadian in Ottawa, said he’s not fearful because he’s lived in Canada for more than 25 years, but, like Mohamud, he also knows many people who live in Minnesota and worries about their safety.“I’m concerned about many people that live down there,” he said.“Trump, we know that he doesn’t care about law and he doesn’t care about facts,” Warsame added. “When the law is not followed, of course what will happen is people will be victimized — people who did not do anything wrong, people who were even born in the United States, but just being of Somali origin will be arrested.”A call for ‘solidarity’The local community says it’s important that the public take a stand against Trump’s rhetoric.“I feel — and many Somali Canadians or Somali Americans feel — that they have to reject [this],” Warsame said. “They have to tell the truth,”Some, like Mohamud and Mahdi, also want to hear “vocal support” of the Somali community from Canadian officials.“I would like to see solidarity with the Somali community,” Mohamud said.“I know that that resilience and that overcoming this kind of situation is going to happen,” he said. “But we also need to show our support. Those of us who are not on the ground feeling this kind of hate being thrown at them, we need to speak up.”ABOUT THE AUTHORJodie Applewaithe is an associate producer with CBC Ottawa. You can reach her at jodie.applewaithe@cbc.caWith files from Liam Baker