Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN) lashed out online in response to the criticism that she faced over her tweet about Christians who were singing worship music during a flight.
The Twitter tempest began after the Muslim lawmaker commented on a viral video showing a man playing the guitar and leading passengers in a Christian song prior to the Easter weekend.
“I think my family and I should have a prayer session next time I am on a plane,” Omar wrote in a tweet containing the video, which reached 36 million views, due partly to Omar’s own promotion of it. “How do you think it will end?”
I think my family and I should have a prayer session next time I am on a plane. How do you think it will end? pic.twitter.com/5696Erwsl5
— Ilhan Omar (@IlhanMN) April 17, 2022
Omar faced substantial backlash to her framing of the video, which was posted during Christian’s Holy Week, which is the week between Palm Sunday and Easter, and the Somali-born lawmaker seemed to relish it.
“And the original snowflakes had a complete and glorious meltdown,” Omar tweeted on Monday.
And the original snowflakes had a complete and glorious meltdown 💅 https://t.co/1t6Jq4OIWM
— Ilhan Omar (@IlhanMN) April 18, 2022
Omar also took aim at a Republican lawmaker who tweeted at Omar: “Shout out to @IlhanMN. Her anti-Christian hate helped propel a song praising Jesus to 33 million views over Easter weekend. ‘Even the rocks will cry out.'”
“Anti-Christian hate?” Omar responded. “You need to stop projecting your bigotry. Religious bigots like you always think others hold the same hate they have in their hearts. It’s Ramadan and I am gonna pray for y’all. May God cleanse your hearts.”
Omar previously wrote on Twitter several years ago, “I actually met (sadly) some Muslims that do celebrate Christmas.”
Omar later deleted the tweet following backlash after the tweet was unearthed when she burst onto the national political scene.
Notable responses to Omar’s original tweet included:
- Ben Shapiro, The Daily Wire: “You can’t whine about public practice of your religion and then demand respect for the public practice of your religion. As a religious Jew, this country is better with MORE of this, not less.”
- Ann Coulter, political commentator: “There are DOZENS of Muslim countries in the world where you might be more comfortable.”
- Steven Crowder, YouTuber: “What’s worse: a mass shooting or singing on a plane? Ilhan Omar only felt a need to comment on one of these.”
- Allie Beth Stuckey, podcast host: “Ilhan Omar asks how people would react if her Muslim family sang their worship songs on a plane. I don’t know, but it’s gotta be better than the reaction to Christian worship in her home country of Somalia, where Christians are slaughtered for praying in public.” She continued, “Yeah, the situation might be a little more understandably tense. But Muslims are afforded equal freedom in the US to worship and speak as they please. Try just BEING a religious minority in a majority Muslim country. You face imprisonment & death.”
- Asra Q. Nomani, activist and former professor: “One thing upon which we can depend: Ilhan Omar/CAIR is a perpetual participant in the Oppression Olympics. And as Easter begins, she has to compete with a Christian ‘prayer session.’”
- Shant Mesrobian, writer: “A member of Congress is supposed to have the restraint and maturity to not post a stupid, random, old video that for some reason is going viral right now as a way to score religious culture war points on a holy day for millions of people around the world.”
- Kurt Schlichter, attorney and columnist: “I think you should shut up and stop being a bigot.”