Rep. Ilhan Omar (D., Minn.) admitted to flubbing the facts of an anecdote she told a large group of students to illustrate the “racism, cruelty, and injustice” she’s seen in America since being accepted as a refugee more than two decades ago.
The freshman representative told 400 high school students she was sent to a Minneapolis courtroom where she witnessed a “sweet, old … African American lady” who spent the weekend in jail for stealing a $2 loaf of bread to feed her “starving 5-year-old granddaughter,” according to the Washington Post. Omar says she screamed “Bullshit!” in the court room after the woman was fined $80 for the crime.
The Post had several pieces of evidence indicating Omar was not entirely truthful about this experience.
“Omar’s story echoed the plot of ‘Les Miserables.’ If true, it is also probably embellished,” wrote Greg Jaffe and Souad Mekhennet, the author’s of the Post‘s article.
“City officials said that police aren’t allowed to arrest people for shoplifting unless there’s a likelihood of violence or further crime. Typically, shoplifters are sentenced to attend a three-hour class.” – read more