Attack on Muslim woman outside Ohio apartment building should be probed as hate crime, says pressure group
An attack on a Somali Muslim woman by four suspects in Ohio should be investigated by police as a possible hate crime, according to the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR).
Video footage of the assault showed the Muslim woman outside an apartment building arguing with the group, who appear to be white, on March 20 in Columbus after dropping her children at the school bus stop. The individuals then attacked her by punching and shoving her to the ground, the group said.
While on the ground, one of the attackers repeatedly kicked her. As she moved to get up and walked toward the building, another assailant exited the structure and struck her across the face.
The victim, who was not identified, believes she was targeted because of her ethnicity and religion, the organization said. She obtained treatment at a nearby hospital and was later released.
Earlier this month, the group, which is the country’s largest Muslim civil liberties organization, reported that it had fielded 8,658 complaints regarding anti-Muslim and anti-Arab incidents last year, representing a 7.4 percent increase year on year. It was also the highest number since CAIR began collecting data in 1996.
Khalid Turaani, executive director of the group’s Ohio, Columbus, Cincinnati and Dayton chapters, said the attack was not an isolated incident, but part of a broader pattern of discrimination and hostility that marginalized communities face daily.
“It is imperative that authorities act swiftly to ensure justice for the victim and her family and to demonstrate that Columbus will not tolerate such alleged acts of violence and intimidation,” he said.
The organization is demanding that police obtain video footage from nearby apartment buildings to identify and confirm the alleged assailants’ actions, arrest and charge all individuals allegedly responsible for the attack under applicable assault and hate crime statutes.
Additionally, the organization wants officials to conduct an internal review of the officers who responded to the scene to assess their handling of the case and determine whether any misconduct occurred.
The Independent has contacted the Columbus Police Department for additional information about the alleged crimes.
Hostilities against the Muslim community have continued to rise, particularly as individuals continue to speak out against genocide and apartheid.
This year, immigration authorities have begun cracking down on protestors across US universities. Weeks ago, immigration officials arrested Mahmoud Khalil, a former Columbia University graduate student and pro-Palestinian activist. The federal government is now seeking his deportation.
Last week, immigration officials detained Badar Khan Suri, a professor at Georgetown University. Both Khalil and Suri are accused of spreading Hamas propaganda. On Tuesday, immigration authorities arrested Turkish national Rumeysa Ozturk, a PhD student in the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences at Tufts University.
