The day after Rep. Ilhan Omar's first public appearance since the raid on her home, Fox News Digital was given a tour of the mall where she reemerged in her home state.
asserted
she → give → state
The footage provides a glimpse inside an enclave within America that is dominated by Somalis and Somali culture, and a gives a peak into the community that Omar represents in the U.S. House of Representatives.
asserted
Omar → provide → Representatives
The mall isn't just a place for people to buy clothing, food and receive services, but is a "community hub" of mostly women entrepreneurs, as described by a female shop owner.
asserted
people → buy → owner
"We're here today are Karmel Mall with brother Basim, to kind of browse through this amazing community, corridor that is full of amazing women," she told Fox News Digital, referring the Karmel Mall of Somalia's owner, Basim Sabri, who provided the tour.
asserted
who → browse → tour
Sabri, a Gaza-born immigrant, came to the United States to study in Minneapolis.
asserted
Sabri → bear → Minneapolis
During that time, he became a real-estate investor and steadily grew his business in the years to come.
asserted
he → become → years
Now, he's a local titan of industry and owns a vast real estate empire, which includes the mall and several apartment complexes in the area that house Somalis.
asserted
that → own → Somalis
He has political ties at all levels of local and state politics, and is friends with Omar.
asserted
He → have → Omar
He also knew the Somali-born congresswoman's father.
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He → know → father
Fox News Digital interviewed him separately, days before the official tour of the mall.
asserted
Digital → interview → mall
It's packed with stores offering electronic SIM cards to call overseas, foreign money exchanges and travel agencies arranging trips to the Middle East and East Africa.
asserted
It → pack → East
Vendors also sell gold, fragrances and traditional Somali fashion items, mostly for women.
asserted
Vendors → sell → women
Sabri gave conflicting figures on the exact number of stores, once saying 900, and later 750.
asserted
Sabri → give → 900
It sports a food court with a giant Somali flag painted on the ceiling, as well as Somali, Palestinian and American flags hanging from the walls.
asserted
It → sport → walls
Many politicians use that space for press conferences, Sabri explained.
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Sabri → use → conferences
It's also where Omar ate lunch with friends, supporters and state Attorney General Keith Ellison during Fox News Digital's foray into the mall when the lawmaker reemerged after casting an early ballot in her own reelection.
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lawmaker → eat → reelection
Karmel Mall also has an Islamic weekend school for children, where they're taught the Quran and engage in recreational activities.
asserted
they → have → activities
While the mall isn't strictly for Somalis, few outside the Somali community were present when Fox News Digital toured.
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Digital → tour → community
Fox News Digital was initially bucked by security upon attempting to enter and film inside the mall without Sabri's permission.
asserted
Digital → buck → permission
The owner once banned Democratic Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey from the premises in February 2024 after he vetoed an Israel-Gaza ceasefire resolution passed by the City Council.
asserted
he → ban → Council
"It is kind of an incubator setting where many businesses start in here, and then many succeed and grow and move somewhere else, to a bigger space," Sabri explained to Fox News Digital.
asserted
Sabri → start → Digital
He claims that the mall is a space where Somalis learn to integrate into the community.
uncertain
Somalis → claim → community
"You can see [the] Somalis not only integrating in the community, but also prospering," he said.
asserted
he → see → community
But the mall's very name — the Karmel Mall of Somalia — along with the overwhelmingly Somali culture inside, raise questions about whether the group is actually assimilating into American society.
asserted
group → raise → society
He pointed Fox News Digital to a CIS report published in December of last year that describes Somalis as a "struggling group."
asserted
that → point → group
The report shows that more than half of children who live in the homes of Somali-born immigrants in Minnesota live in poverty, compared to only 8% of children living in homes of native-born Minnesotans.
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who → show → Minnesotans
Among Somali-born immigrants who have lived in the United States for more than a decade, half cannot speak English "very well."
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half → bear → English
The report says that 89% of Somali households receive some form of welfare, and 39% don't have high school diplomas, compared to only 8% of the native population.
asserted
% → say → population
Camerota argued that across America, assimilation among various foreign-born groups, including Somalis, has dropped, though today's immigration numbers are about the same they were during America's first great wave of immigration.
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they → argue → immigration
In the late 19th- and early 20th-centuries, immigrations from across the world flooded the United States.
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immigrations → flood → States
During that time, immigrants comprised about 15% of America's population, on par with todays numbers.
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immigrants → comprise → numbers
After World War I, restrictive immigration policies that lasted until the 1960s took effect.
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that → last → effect
In more recent history, immigration has ramped up to the tune of one million legal immigrants per year entering the United States, Camerota said.
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Camerota → ramp → States
"So, there are three big things about modern immigration that you can argue greatly hinder assimilation, and it has much less to do with the immigrants, and a lot more to do with just modern conditions," he told Fox News Digital.
asserted
he → be → Digital
You can fly home and visit home for the holidays if you want.
asserted
you → fly → holidays
In a way that just wouldn't have been possible in 1900, and in terms of costs."
Camerota noted that the internet allows people access to constant news from home, and the constant ability to stay connected with family and friends via phone and video calls.
asserted
internet → note → calls
And that likely means that the connection with the home country doesn't become as attenuated as quickly as it would have," he said.
asserted
he → mean → country
The attitudes of those who Camerota characterizes as "elites," in academia, government, media and other institutions has also changed.
asserted
Camerota → characterize → academia
He said there are now dueling theories about the what exactly America is that could be contributing to a lack of assimilation.
uncertain
that → say → assimilation
"So is America essentially a magnificent historical project of democracy and equality and republican government, or is it essentially — most of that's a sham and it's really a racist, sexist, homophobic [and] classist society?" he said.
asserted
he → say → that
…and 18 more, not listed.
The Aporia
