The Metropolitan Police are investigating an assault on a black Muslim woman who was punched, spat at, and had her hijab pulled by a woman who had shouted racist abuse at them, as another vehicle had attempted to run them off of the road.
The anti-Muslim and Islamophobic attack occurred last week on February 16.
After speaking with Tell MAMA’s casework team, the woman, who wishes to remain anonymous, described how she “could not get her head around” what had happened. To further protect their identity, we are not disclosing precise location information.
She described how she had been on a driving lesson with her father in north-west London, noting that the targeting from the first vehicle started for several minutes (including flashing lights and the tossing of objects towards their car) in a 20-mph zone. She stayed, however, in the same lane until another vehicle, containing the perpetrator and her male partner, had overtaken them and forced them to stop after almost running them off the road.
After observing the female perpetrator exiting the passenger-side door and shouting obscenities and abuse, the Muslim woman did not anticipate the violence that would follow as the white woman had forced open the driver’s door, punching her repeatedly, spitting at her, and grabbing her hijab.
A child from the perpetrator’s vehicle had witnessed the attack and was standing in the road the entire time.
It left the Muslim woman with a scratch on her face, a swollen eye, and a broken necklace – reflecting the force the perpetrator had exerted when pulling at her hijab.
She told our casework team how she ‘never expected’ this to happen to her.
A family member contacted the police, who, having collected the dashcam footage, continue their investigation.
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