Hijab pulled from woman's head on busy Limerick street

A YOUNG Muslim woman has described how she "froze" when a boy pulled her hijab from her head while she was enjoying a coffee in Limerick city.

She says the incident which occurred by the river on Harvey’s Quay left her "shocked and frustrated."

The victim, who wishes to remain anonymous, was confronted by a group of six teenagers on October 2.

“I was having my Starbucks, sitting alone on one of these wooden tables, and a bunch of boys came. They saw me sitting alone, and sat with me on the same table,” she explained.

As she was feeling uncomfortable, she stood up to leave. That’s when, she says, one of the boys blocked her way with his leg.

“I asked him to remove his leg and he said, 'why'? Then, they all got up and turned around me. To be honest, I was afraid they would snatch my phone or my bag, so I was holding on to my bag and my phone.”

“One of them came from behind me. I was wearing my scarf, my hijab, and on top of it my beanie. He pulled and snatched my beanie and my scarf, and in that moment, I didn’t even fix my scarf to cover myself again,” she explained.

“I was just shocked. I was frozen, I didn't do anything. I stood up and yelled at them because I was so frustrated. I heard one of them saying, ‘I think you’re not supposed to do that.”

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After she told them she was going to call the gardai, the boys ran away. She reported the incident, but was told that because the individuals were underage, the gardai couldn't circulate the photos she managed to capture of her attackers.

“This is not OK. You cannot do this, Muslim or not. You cannot touch anyone without their consent, no matter what they are”, she stated.

Her friend, Rayene Larkeche, has seen similar incidents happen in the city. Rayene says she feels safer in Castletroy, where she is doing her PhD in Feminist and Trauma studies at the University of Limerick.

“If I go to town, I always expect to be called out, or that teenagers would come after me. I remember I was once waiting at the bus station in town and someone was calling me a Muslim and stuff like that,” she said.

The gardai noted any criminal offence perceived to be motivated by hostility or prejudice, should be reported to them.

In Limerick, The Migrant Victim Support project, launched by Doras, aims to highlight the barriers that people face in the migrant community.

Jane Ridley, from The Migrant Victim Support, said: “Often, migrants are not aware of their rights in Ireland, especially when it concerns being a victim of crime. They are often too afraid to report the crimes, and they go unnoticed. Our role is to help bridge that gap, overcome the barriers, and empower victims to report and know their rights.”

Victims of crime are encouraged to reach out for support and can do so here.

“We would accompany them to appointments if required. Similarly, when reporting to the police, we will assist them and ensure the complaints are taken seriously,” added Ms. Ridley.

Recently, Councillor, Daniel Butler, took action after racist symbols were tagged onto a road sign.

He commented: “I think we need to understand the significance of certain aspects of cultures, so we can understand why an act like this is so offensive and upsetting. It must be all our responsibilities to inform ourselves and challenge any racist activity we come across.”