US Ambassador to Somalia Stephen Schwarz presents the President of Somalia Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed with a hat that reads “Make Somalia Great Again” (Twitter)

Donald Trump’s campaign hat, which reads “Make America Great Again” has become the icon of a movement. So much so, that the US Ambassador to Somalia just gave the President of Somalia a version of the hat that reads “Make Somalia Great Again.” Seriously.


Now, at this point you might be asking, “But Matt, isn’t Somalia on the list for Donald Trump’s travel ban?” And you would be absolutely, 100 percent correct.

The seven countries that Trump’s executive order has tried to ban travel from (despite being repeatedly struck down in courts so far) are: Iran, Iraq, Libya, Sudan, Syria, Yemen, and Somalia. There’s something completely bizarre about the United States trying to ban travel from a particular nation and then handing them a cheeky hat with a pseudo-populist slogan identified by half of Americans as racist bullshit.


It almost feels like a hazing ritual that Trump made US ambassador to Somalia, Stephen Schwartz, do to prove that he could still be ambassador to the country. The Muslim travel ban has seen families treated like criminals, saved only at the last minute by courts ruling against Trump’s unconstitutional ban.

Some Somali refugees are now even fleeing the United States on foot for Canada. One Somali refugee who recently walked 21 hours in the harsh winter elements to get to Canada simply explained that “America is [a] problem now” when he arrived.

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Last week, the Somali president, more commonly known as “Farmajo” in Somalia, said that he objected to the ban.

“It is part of my responsibility to talk about this issue with the U.S. government by conveying our message to the president and his government that the Somali people are really good, hard working people,” Farmajo said during a speech. “They raise their families in the United States. So we will see if he can change that policy and exclude Somalis from that list.”


(AP Photo/Jae C. Hong, File)

But in true American fashion, “Make X Great Again” is getting co-opted and remixed to mean any number of things.




“Make Somalia Great Again,” hasn’t been trademarked yet, but there is a legitimate land grab for intellectual property rights involving Trump-related merchandise right now. An insurance company even filed for a trademark to Trumpcare™ recently.

Other recent applications for trademarks?

Make Sex Great Again

Make Aggie Football Great Again



Make Paper Great Again



Make The Jets Great Again



Make Mental Health Services Great Again



Make Radio Great Again



Make America Shoot Great Again



Make American Steak Great Again



Make Black Great Again



Make Christmas Great Again



Make Pinball Great Again



Make Pivots Great Again

Make Church Great Again



Make Oregon Great Again



Make Your Hair Great Again

Make Family Great Again



Make Retirement Great Again



Make Massage Great Again



Make Deer Breeding Great Again



Make Bass Fishing In America Great Again



Meow American Great Again



Make Your Engine Great Again



Make Social Media Great Again



Make Roofs Great Again



Make NASA Great Again



Make Carpet Great Again



Make the Ocean Great Again



Make Tennis Great Again

Let’s Make Soda Great Again



Make Drilling Great Again



Making Cigar’s [sic] Great Again



Make California Great Again



Make Congress Great Again



Make Shipping Great Again



Make Russia Great Again



Make Sleep Great Again



Make Insurance Great Again



These are all completely real. And it’s not even a full list of every “Great Again” trademark that’s been filed recently.


That stupid hat probably won’t “make Somalia great again,” but it will certainly remind people around the world that Americans can be both racist and tone-deaf at the same time.

[Twitter via RT]