After President Donald Trump called Somali immigrants quote "garbage" this week, some in Maine's Somali community fear the rhetoric could spark violence.
During a cabinet meeting Tuesday, Trump said he doesn't want Somali immigrants to be in the U.S. at all.
It comes as immigration agents are launching an operation in Minnesota, reportedly targeting the state's large Somali population.
In Lewiston, Somali interpreter and nonprofit director Ifraax Saciid-Ciise said the president's attacks are jarring.
"I find it very hard to believe that president, who is supposed to represent everybody, all the people in the United States, [would] target a group of very vulnerable population here in America," Saciid-Ciise said.
She said many in the community worry Trump's words could incite violence or harassment against Somali residents.
"It has created a lot of fear," she said, because people unfamiliar with the Somali community "may take his words as real, and as a fact, and they may also target the Somali people."
Safiya Khalid, who served as the first Somali-American on the Lewiston city council, said in a social media post that she was quote "deeply offended and disgusted" by the president's attacks, and called on state and local elected leaders to stand up for their Somali constituents.
Lewiston Mayor Carl Sheline called the president's assertion that Somali immigrants contribute nothing to society "shameful and inaccurate."
"Here, Somali entrepreneurs are business owners and hard workers, creating jobs and strengthening our local economy," Sheline said in a written statement on Wednesday. "Their active role within our City has been instrumental in Lewiston's revitalization, making such rhetoric not only cruel but clearly false. We will continue to celebrate the contributions of all immigrants who help build a better America."
