This Is What America Looks Like: My Journey from Refugee to Congresswoman

Ilhan Omar, the first African refugee and first Somali American elected to U.S. Congress and one of the first Muslim women in that position, recounts her life in this memoir. The Atlantic named it a Best Political Book of the Year. Omar was eight when war erupted in Somalia. As the youngest of seven children and having lost her mother in childhood, she was raised by her father and grandfather until armed gunmen attacked their compound. The family fled Mogadishu and spent four years in a refugee camp in Kenya before being granted refugee status and arriving in Arlington, Virginia. At twelve, speaking only Somali and without formal schooling, Omar worked to build her American life. She faced the challenges of being an immigrant and refugee while questioning stereotypes and connecting with her community. Within two decades, she became a grassroots organizer, completed college, and was elected to Congress with record-breaking voter turnout in Minnesota. The memoir chronicles her personal journey from refugee to public servant, covering her hopes, disappointments, successes, and sacrifices. It presents both her coming-of-age story and her work as a devoted public servant committed to the promise of America.