The Minneapolis City Council voted Friday to mark July 1 as “Somali American day” in the city, which is home to many immigrants from the east African country.

The date holds significance among Somalis, who celebrate independence day on July 1 both in Somalia and the United States diaspora.

Abdi Warsame, the first Somali-American on the Minneapolis City Council, praised the resolution at a council meeting on Friday. A gathering of Somali-American men were in attendance.

“This is a very important resolution for me,” Warsame said. “And it actually came from the elders and the community leaders who wanted to highlight the contributions, the culture, the values of the Somali-American community, which is a large and growing population in the city of Minneapolis.”

The July 1 independence day commemorates when the Somali Republic was created by uniting two territories previously controlled by Italy and Britain.

Photo: Warsame hands the resolution to Osman Mohamed Ali, founder of the Somali Artifact and Cultural Museum, where it will be housed.