Somalis in America

Donald Trump says Somali immigrants in the US should “go back to where they came from.” The President’s comments come after allegations of large-scale fraud in Minnesota's social assistance programme, implicating several Somali immigrants.

Trump has repeatedly criticised the community saying he does not want Somali immigrants in the United States and that their country is “no good for a reason.”

In our conversations we bring together three Somalis who have made their homes in Minnesota.

“Somalis were introduced to the mainstream years ago with films like Black Hawk Down and Captain Phillips – we’re painted as these savage people and the depiction of us is just untrue,” Adbi tells us. “We’ve never been in control of our own narrative, so this is another example of a media topic that we don’t have control over.”

We also bring together Somalis in Finland, Canada and the UK, and we hear from people in Somalia itself. Somalia’s recent history has been shaped by more than 30 years of civil war, so what is it like to live in the country today?

Presenter: James Reynolds
BBC producers: Ash Mohamed and Angela Sheeran
Boffin Media producer: Richard Hollingham
Editor: Arja Haikonen and Harriet Oliver

An EcoAudio certified Boffin Media production in partnership with the OS team.

(Photo: A Somali woman in Minnesota. Credit: Tim Evan/Reuters)