Stranger verbally attacks Winnipeg teen in hijab during curbside pickup

A Winnipeg teen who wears a hijab and was recently subjected to a verbal attack wants people in the city to know Islamophobia is real and take steps to combat hate when they see it.

The teenager, who CBC News is calling Helen to protect her identity, said she was doing a curbside pickup with her sister recently when she was accosted by a woman who used a number of slurs and told her she was going to burn in hell.

This isn't the first time something like this has happened to Helen, but it was for her sister.

"When you're in that moment, you're just kind of like, 'Oh, here we go again. We have to go through this again.' But for my sister, it was her first time and she was kind of shaking beside me," the teenager said on CBC Manitoba's Information Radio on Wednesday.

Helen said the woman who attacked them referenced terrorist groups who fight in the name of Islam, although countless Muslim groups have denounced those groups. The woman also voiced support for former U.S. president Donald Trump's ban on immigration from a number of Muslim-majority countries and insisted on the superiority of her own religion.

Helen videotaped part of the encounter and shared it privately on her social media. CBC News isn't sharing it because it would identify her and her sister.

"The whole point of the video was just to bring awareness to the fact that we as a country, as a city, we need to take a step, take action and change," she said.

"And the change comes and starts from here, because as long as we were starting to change smaller things, such as insults and stuff, it won't escalate to bigger things later on."

Islamophobia isn't just a problem in the U.S., and it's not a problem of the past, Helen said.

"Things like this really do happen," she said.

"I would rather be in a city where I walk down the sidewalk and think that I'm completely safe. However, I don't, and it's really sad to know that it's happening in our city."

Idris Elbakri, chair of the Muslim Islamic Association board, said people with hateful views seem to be targeting younger people.

"This seems to be a pattern where the victims are young people, children or teenagers, and I wonder … if people pick on them because they're so young and vulnerable and may not have the means to stand up for themselves," he said.

"A young woman of that age should be focusing on her high school exams and end of term exams, not dealing with something like this."

People like Helen might be afraid to talk openly about attacks for good reason, Elbakri said.

Even so, he recommends reporting incidents to the police and keeping safety top of mind when engaging with people who are full of anger and hate.

He also wants young Muslims to know they are not alone.

"People should not have to go through this alone, and as a community, we will stand with each other and help each other to go through these unfortunate events," Elbakri said.

Moving forward with hope

Helen said the many responses to her video shows she's not alone.

A number of other women who wear hijabs, or hijabi, sent her messages telling their own stories and offering support, she said.

"It was such a beautiful connection to know that we as sisters of Islam are standing together and we are always protecting each other and where we have each other's backs," she said.

"It made me feel like people are still out there that truly, truly care and that if we do keep bringing awareness to this, there is a chance."