Three Drunks on Train Harass Woman in Hijab, Commuters Do Nothing
(Credit: Alamy)
UPDATE: Yasmin Seweid has been charged with falsely reporting a hate crime. Yahoo News has full coverage.
New York City police are seeking more information about men who harassed a young woman in a hijab on the subway this week. Yasmin Seweid, an 18-year-old business student, was verbally harassed by the men as she waited for a train on the platform, according to the New York Daily News.
The three men were reportedly yelling “Trump” and called Seweid a terrorist as they followed her onto a 6 train in New York City’s east side. As the men continued to harass Seweid, the incident turned physical when they grabbed at her bag and attempted to pull off her head scarf. Seweid was surprised and saddened that no one on the train came to her aid. She took to social media to voice her feelings:
I was harassed on the subway last night and it was just so dehumanizing I can’t speak about it without getting emotional. Three white racists ripped the straps off my bag & attempted to yank my hijab off my head. They yelled such disgusting slurs at me, I was so helpless and felt defenseless. “Look it’s a f***ing terrorist”, “go back to your country”, “take that rag off your head”, and so many more. Trump’s name was repeatedly said & it finally clicked in my head. No matter how “cultured” or “Americanized” I am, these people don’t see me as an American. It breaks my heart that so many individuals chose to be bystanders while watching me get harassed verbally and physically by these disgusting pigs…
Her father, Sayeed Seweid, was also disappointed in the lack of support and empathy from other commuters. “Nobody even offered to help an 18-year-old girl,” he told the Daily News. “You offer help — it doesn’t matter the race, religion, or the country.” Yasmin Seweid is of Egyptian heritage and was born in Brooklyn. “I was born and raised in this country,” she told the New York City paper.
She reported the incident to the NYPD, but no arrests have been made at this time.
According to the Daily News, NYPD has recorded 34 bias crimes between Nov. 8 and Nov. 27, an increase over the 13 similar crimes reported in 2015.
