Officer Harasses Woman For Wearing Hijab At Shaw Library, Eyewitnesses Say
An officer asked a woman to remove her hijab and then threatened her with arrest when she refused at the Watha T. Daniel/Shaw Neighborhood Library this afternoon, according to eyewitnesses.
"I was within a foot of the woman who was harassed," says Jessica Raven, the interim executive director of Collective Action for Safe Spaces. She said the exchange began very quietly.
"All I heard was he started asking her to take off her hijab. My jaw dropped," Raven says. "The man next to her spoke up, but the officer continued to harass her. Ultimately he came towards her in an intimidating way, pulled out his handcuffs and said if she didn't want to take off [the hijab], she had to leave." She left.
George Williams, spokesperson for D.C. Public Library, says that the officer has been removed from that location and that DCPL is investigating the incident, for which it apologized despite not being able to confirm the details.
"We welcome and serve everybody, and we take very seriously that this woman did not feel welcome," he says. Part of the investigation includes identifying the woman in question.
The officer was not with the Metropolitan Police Department, a spokesperson for MPD says, because the library has its own force.
Raven identified the officer in question, based on his badge, as one who was dismissed and rehired after pleading guilty to destroying a citizen's property. Williams said that the identity of the officer is also part of the library's investigation.
Raven says that the library could make amends with a public information campaign that made it clear DCPL is a safe space for Muslim women.
Ward 6 Councilmember Charles Allen said on Twitter he has spoken with DCPL about the incident (the library is in his ward).
Darakshan Raja, co-founder of the Muslim American Women's Policy Forum, says that this is a reminder that Islamophobia is not an abstract thing, especially in a political climate where presidential candidates are calling to surveil Muslim communities and block Muslim travel to the U.S.
"It's a moment of a lot of fear for Muslims, especially Muslim women," Raja says. "After Brussels happened, I know women in D.C. who were afraid to leave their house."
While she says she's encouraged by the quick response from the D.C. community, Raja remains worried about the woman at the center of the incident. "We have no idea where this woman is, and she just went through a traumatic experience. She has no idea that her story has sparked this response. My heart is with her."
Updated to clarify that the officer has been removed from that location, and with comment from Darakshan Raja.
