Social media users expressed outrage this week over video that appeared to show Arizona State University (ASU) police removing the hijab of a student protester.
On Monday, the Council on American Islamic Relations (CAIR) in Arizona issued a press release accusing ASU police officers of "reportedly forcibly removing the Islamic headscarves, or hijabs, of Muslim women arrested at a pro-Palestine rally on the university's campus."
"A video allegedly showed ASU police officers removing a woman's hijab during an arrest, with reports indicating this happened to at least four women during campus protests. CAIR AZ is looking into the incident," the press release said.
Azza Abuseif, executive director of CAIR AZ, said, "the First Amendment guarantees the practice of religion. Police cannot suspend this right. We condemn the reported actions of ASU police and call for a full investigation into this incident."
A spokesperson for ASU told Newsweek, "This matter is under review."
Over the past few weeks, pro-Palestinian protests have broken out on several other college campuses across the U.S., including Columbia University, George Washington University and the University of California, Los Angeles.
Videos posted on social media this week appeared to show law enforcement officials arresting some pro-Palestinian protesters at ASU and removing a hijab from a woman's head.
"US Police forcibly taking out the #hijab of a pro-#Palestine Muslim woman protester at Arizona State University," Dr. Raza Khan wrote on X, formerly Twitter, sharing the video. "Basic human values are compromised just to PLEASE Israel. Why?"
X user @JonnyFX1 shared the video, saying, "If this isn't 'islamaphobic' I don't know what is?! Removing a women's hijab without her consent must feel like such a violation. 4 women had this done to them at Arizona State University. These officers are a disgrace!"
X user @ShirinKhan0 said, "Four women at Arizona State University [ASU] had their hijabs removed by police following their arrest. This is nothing but Islamophobia."
The CAIR national chapter also responded to the video, saying, "We strongly condemn @ArizonaState police for forcibly removing the hijabs of Muslim women who were arrested for peacefully protesting the genocide in Gaza. CAIR Arizona's attorneys are working to gather more information about this blatant abuse of the Constitution, which highlights the disastrous intersection of police brutality, censorship, Islamophobia and anti-Palestinian racism on college campuses."
While speaking with AZ Family this week, attorney David Chami, who serves as a volunteer board member for CAIR AZ said, "It was very clear from the beginning that law enforcement was determined to crush the protest, to prevent these students and citizens from practicing their First Amendment rights. And it's reminiscent of what you'll see in an authoritarian country. It's not what you expect to see in the United States."
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Matthew Impelli is a Newsweek staff writer based in New York. His focus is reporting social issues and crime. In ... Read more
