Shifa Abuzaid
about 6 years ago

This afternoon I went out to lunch with my cousins, 13 people, the oldest 21 and the youngest just 10 years old. I proudly wear a hijab on my head. As we walked to our cars a middle aged couple walked past us and the man called us a "bunch of terrorists". We all froze because we've never been faced with such bigoted hatred to our faces. My younger brother and sister automatically walked up to him in the nearby store and tried to confront him and all of the younger kids were i...mmediately shaken up. He answered our calm inquisitions as to why he assumed he had any right to make such a hateful assumption towards us with laughter and smiles. When I calmly asked again why he thought I was a terrorist he moved right into our faces and pushed my little brother, who is just FIFTEEN. He mocked my sister by saying "oh look at you, you're shaking, how funny". He taunted the young kids, called them angry, and laughed in their faces saying he had a right to believe whatever he wanted. Beliefs are beliefs, however when you insinuate that an entire group of children, teenagers, and young girls belong to a "terrorist" group in PUBLIC and OUT LOUD, you're being Islamapobic, ignorant, and just hateful.

Thank you to the manager, staff, and customers at Sur La Table in Sugar Land Town Center for ensuring our safety by kicking out the man who insisted that we "take things outside" and calling us a security escort. We are okay because of good people like you.

When you see hatred, bigotry, ignorance, and you have a chance to confront it DO IT. By staying silent you allow for hatred and ignorance to grow. While we weren't able to get this man to understand this wrongdoing we were able to witness the goodness and earnestness of bystanders who knew he was wrong and knew he was out of line.

Below is a photo of the man, and a video of part of the altercation where he was laughing and smiling before getting in my siblings' faces. SPD said they could not file a report or take his picture from us because nobody was physically harmed. However, I know today is New Year's and a lot of you will be in that shopping center and enjoying yourselves like we intended to by eating at their establishments.

Stay safe, spread love not hate.

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Posted by Shifa Abuzaid
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