A hijab -clad mother-daughter duo was assaulted, and called ‘ISIS’ by a woman in an alleged hate crime incident, the latest in the U.S. amid growing concerns over rising Islamophobic rhetoric. The two Muslim women reported being harassed and physically attacked in the West Rogers Park neighbourhood here.
The women said they were physically and verbally assaulted by another woman who hurled anti-Islamic insults at them. They also claimed that the Chicago police were not taking the incident seriously.
Suzanne Damra told NBC Chicago that the woman followed her and her mother just last on Thursday, and tried to spit on them while calling them ‘ISIS’.
Trump effect? A cell phone video, shot by one of the women, shows the alleged assailant hurling insults, as the two take refuge in their car. The woman can be heard screaming “[Y]ou Isis! ... you ISIS!”
Ms. Damra said it was at least the fifth time she and her mother had been accosted by the woman.
Ms. Damra’s mother Siham Zahdam said she believed Donald Trump’s rhetoric had emboldened those with anti-Islamic sentiments. “People copy what he is saying. And they think he is going to make the white people more powerful!” she said. Chicago Police confirmed they were investigating the incident as a simple assault.
Published - August 17, 2016 12:29 am IST
