I was always made aware of inequality in society, that there was a class system. In Somalia, we have clan structures. My mother's family is ethnically not Somali, and so we spoke often about what it meant to be 'other' in that way.

I talk all the time about the eight-year-old me and all the eight-year-olds who are living in their camps.

I have been very fortunate to have a partner who really stepped up and have wonderful children who do a lot of things that make it easy for Mommy to do this work.

We say this is a land of immigrants, and we forget that this was a land that belonged to people. And those of us who are new immigrants and those of us who come from generations of immigrants have to realize we are not that much different from one another.

I was a teenager when 9/11 happened. And I really was uncomfortable with many members of our community feeling like they had to strip themselves of their identity in order to mitigate the violence and the fears that they were feeling.

For me, as an immigrant who didn't speak the language, when I would have struggles as a kid, my dad would say, 'Once you are able to communicate with people, they're able to connect with you beyond your otherness.' That is really the message I've carried throughout my life.

I had a lot of challenges starting school, and my dad says I would come home every day crying and feeling bad about the problems I was having with some of the kids. And he would tell me to work hard on learning the language.

I look forward to being a voice of reason in fighting for transparent and accountable budgets.

Some suggest that, as a woman, I meddle in political affairs and need to be 'put in my place.'

I am committed to growing participation in the political process and doing it the right way.

I talk a lot about the men in my family because my mother died when I was little, and my grandmother died when my aunts were little, so we didn't have those kinds of heads of household. But all the members of our household who were female were sort of living as equal and as wise as the male figures in our family.

Minnesota's diversity should be its greatest strength, but our neglect of nonwhite students has stifled our progress toward growth and equity.

American hate is not new - and it is not scarce.

We need to recognize that racism has never been subtle, though it has gone underreported.

I'm going from the state House to the opportunity to serve in Congress and serve the people in the Fifth, which is a great honor and a great opportunity... It is something that is exciting to a few people, but, you know, often times it is important for us to own the moment, celebrate it, and then move on.

Many in the Somali community are excited to vote and support candidates who have shown an ability to lead with integrity and not use props and gatekeepers to get their votes.

No Minnesotan should ever experience preventable health risks from breathing polluted air or from drinking unsafe water.

I know that when we interact with those we fear and hate, we will find commonality.

There are a few things that we can do. One of them is that we can increase the taxes that people are paying who are the extremely wealthy in our communities. So, 70 percent, 80 percent, we've had it as high as 90 percent.

The one percent must pay their fair share.

When people were selling the politics of fear and division and destruction, we were talking about hope. We were talking about the politics of joy.

One night, militia tried to break into our home, and the exterior was riddled with bullets.

I find hope in knowing that I belong to a state that has a lot of people who are champions of change and progress; that we will rise up and fight for justice and equality; that, ultimately, love will trump hate.

This country gave us hope. This country allowed for us to develop our own identity and to create our own home. And we should not look down on the next person that is trying to do that.

Insinuations that Ahmed Nur Said Elmi is my brother are absurd and offensive.

The house I was born in in Somalia was right next to a big market. A lot of beggars or panhandlers would be in front of our house constantly, and my grandfather and grandmother would always invite them in to have food with us and have them take whatever was left over.

I grew up under a dictatorship. I knew what it meant for people to not have the ability to freely express themselves.

We need to be constantly reminded that this is a representative democracy, and we need to be in tune to what people are talking about.

I grew up in a household where we all celebrated who we were. There was no space to make people feel different or 'less than.'

My kids have been around politics since they were little.

I have a great sense of who I am.

We've become the party that wants to appease everyone and no one. And I think the only way that the Democrats become viable again is if we have people who have moral clarity and courage to say what they need to say and fight for what they need to fight for.

I would have loved to have heard a story like mine. I could have used it as an inspiration to get by.

I want to go to Washington to make sure we really have an opportunity to expand health care for folks so that is accessible to them.

When I was coming to this country, I heard about its promises.

When I first arrived in the country, I really didn't speak much of the language. I knew two words coming here, and they were 'Hello' and 'Shut up.'

I think my faith as a Muslim is very important. One of the core values is that you are always trying to build consensus. So when it comes to figuring out if something is permissible or not in Islam, it's usually a discussion, and people have to come to a consensus in order for something to be approved.

I think a big part of my faith teachings is to work together towards equality: that we're all created equal, and under the eyes of God, we all have a right to freedom and to access our rights equally.

Here in Minnesota, we don't only welcome immigrants; we send them to Washington.

I think we forget that, for a really long time, this country has been a place that has welcomed many refugees who have made it home and have tremendously contributed to this country.

We know that when people are civically engaged, when they understand what their rights are, when they understand that in a democracy you can challenge governments, you can challenge policymakers, and you can... actually shape and form future policy, I think it changes the perception that a lot of young people have about where power is.

What I always emphasize is that I am a representative who happens to be Somali.

I try not to think of my life in terms of separation.

ICE has only become increasingly militarized, brutal, and unaccountable.

We are accountable to each other; having an equitable Minnesota benefits everyone, not just the disenfranchised.

I think being an immigrant makes me overly optimistic.

I will never apologize for standing up against oppression and injustice in Israel or anywhere else.

Israel is an ally of the United States, and I think as much as you would look to your neighbor to your friends to live out the same values as you are, we want to make sure that our allies are living out the same values that we push for here.

When I talk about places like Saudi Arabia or Israel or even now with Venezuela, I'm not criticizing the people. I'm not criticizing their faith. I'm not criticizing their way of life.

I know how it feels to be hated because of my religious beliefs.