On Thursday’s broadcast of FOX 9 Minneapolis-St. Paul’s “FOX 9 All Day,” Bloomington Police Chief Booker Hodges confronted the issue directly, saying authorities are currently dealing with Somali American gangs. He also rejected the notion that recognizing that problem means condemning the broader Somali American community.

Hodges said he takes pride in speaking honestly and has no intention of softening his description of the gang issue. His message was blunt: A problem cannot be addressed if officials and the public are too afraid to identify it.

“I pride myself on telling the truth. I’m not going to sugarcoat it. We’re dealing with Somali American gangs right now,” Hodges stated.

The chief placed the current concern within a broader pattern of gang activity involving different communities. He said his life has included periods when authorities dealt with gangs identified with several other groups.

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“Throughout my life, we’ve dealt with Hmong American gangs, African American gangs, Italian gangs,” Hodges said. “We’ve dealt with different groups throughout history in this country who are, unfortunately, being involved in gang activity.”

At the same time, Hodges repeatedly warned against using the conduct of gang members to judge an entire community. Identifying Somali American gangs, he explained, does not mean every Somali American is involved in criminal activity.

“Now, by no means does this mean that every member of the Somali community, Somali American community is involved in these activities, because they’re not,” he said.

Hodges emphasized that the vast majority of Somali Americans are law-abiding people who work every day and try to support themselves. His comments drew a clear line between acknowledging gang activity and unfairly treating an entire population as responsible.

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“The vast majority of Somalis, just like the rest of us, Somali Americans, go to work every single day, busting their butt, trying to make a living,” Hodges said.

The chief said his own involvement in the community gives him a direct view of those working people. He noted that his community engagement began before he wore a police uniform.

“And when you are really involved in the community like I am, and I’ve been like this before I put this uniform on, I see these people, every day, working, busting their butt to make their American Dream,” Hodges said.

That distinction formed the heart of his response to allegations that identifying Somali American gangs is racist. Hodges refused to accept that framing and said other people could choose a different approach if they wished.

“So this — to say it’s racist, it’s like, no, we’re not — I’m not going to go down that road. And others can choose to do that,” he said.

For Hodges, the practical issue is whether people are willing to name a problem before attempting to solve it. Focusing more heavily on potential accusations of racism than on the gang issue itself, he said, leaves the underlying problem untouched.

“But, ultimately, if you don’t identify a problem, there’s no way you’re going to fix it,” Hodges said. “And it’s just, people are worried about calling something racist more than they are fixing the problem, and it’s just ridiculous to me.”

His remarks combined two arguments that are too often treated as incompatible. Authorities can identify gang activity associated with members of a particular community while refusing to smear the law-abiding majority of that community.

Hodges concluded that people should not be “pegging people and dumping them into groups based on a few people.” His criticism was aimed both at ignoring a gang problem over fears of racist labeling and at judging an entire community because of the conduct of a small number of people.

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