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It didn’t take long for critics to call out the hypocrisy. Here was a member of Congress—elected to serve American citizens—virtue signaling about slavery in a nation that abolished it over a century ago, while failing to acknowledge it still exists in her birthplace.
And this isn’t just political mudslinging. A 2024 report from the U.S. State Department lays out a disturbing reality in Somalia:
“IDPs, minority populations, people residing in al-Shabaab territory, and Somali children working in informal sectors remain the most vulnerable to sex trafficking and forced labor. Some Somalis willingly surrender custody of their children to people with whom they share familial ties or clan linkages who may subsequently exploit some of these children in forced labor or sex trafficking. Traffickers may exploit children in forced labor in agriculture, domestic work, herding, selling or portering khat, crushing stones, fishing, forced begging, or construction.”
In short, the country Omar fled from is still plagued by slavery-like conditions. Yet she chose to moralize to Americans about “systematic racism” rather than address the suffering of children in the very region she once called home.
The deleted post wasn’t her only Juneteenth message. A more carefully worded statement remains on her page:
“On Juneteenth, we remember that freedom is not always swift but it is always worth the fight. It’s a powerful reminder of how long justice can take to reach those who deserve it most. Today, we celebrate Black freedom, resilience, and achievement, and continue the work to root out systematic racism from our policies and institutions.”
But the damage was already done. Americans noticed. The internet noticed. And conservative voices didn’t hesitate to point out the irony.
Omar has frequently positioned herself as a champion of human rights and social justice. But when it comes to speaking out about real-time human rights abuses in Somalia—where children are still trafficked, enslaved, and exploited—her silence is deafening.
Critics argue that if Omar truly cared about justice, she would use her massive platform to shed light on the modern-day slavery taking place in Somalia and across Africa. Instead, she chose to preach to Americans while deleting her own inconvenient truths.
This isn’t the first time Omar’s rhetoric has sparked backlash. But this time, she couldn’t even stand behind her own words for more than 15 minutes.
It’s one thing to virtue signal. It’s another to get called out—and hit delete.
