U.S. police investigate attacks on Muslims
University students report violence and graffiti after Trump elected president
Officials at universities in Louisiana and California said police were investigating attacks on Wednesday against female Muslim students, and officials described one of the episodes as a “hate crime.”
The attacks, coming a day after the nation voted to elect Donald Trump, underscored the criticism he had faced throughout his presidential campaign from opponents who said his harsh anti-Muslim language was emboldening extremists.
A Muslim student at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette told police on Wednesday morning that she was walking when a car pulled up to her, and two white men stepped out and attacked her, according to an email sent by the university to students, faculty and staff. The men, one of whom was wearing a white hat emblazoned with “Trump,” hit her with a metal object, dropping her to the ground, she said. While she was down, the student said, they stole her head covering and wallet.
University officials did not comment on the attack, but confirmed the details of the email, which was sent just before 8 p.m. Wednesday, and that police were investigating. The victim was not identified.
The Lafayette Police Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
In California, the San Diego State University police said they were investigating a similar attack, which they described as a hate crime.
A student who was wearing traditional garments and a hijab reported that while she was walking to her car, two men — one white and one Hispanic — confronted her and made comments about Trump and Muslims, according to a police summary.
The student reported that the men had grabbed her purse and backpack and had taken her car keys before fleeing.
She was not injured. The unidentified victim alerted police and led them back to the scene, discovering that her car was gone.
After the election, universities also reported campus graffiti referring to Trump and some of the themes he has espoused.
New York University’s Muslim Students Association said on its Facebook page that students at the Tandon School of Engineering awoke on Wednesday to find “Trump” scrawled on the door of their prayer room, adding that they are “realizing that our campus is not immune to the bigotry that grips America.”