SOUTH CAROLINA – A leading US Muslim organization has asked GOP presidential candidate Donald Trump to offer a public apology to a Muslim woman verbally abused by the crowd and kicked out of one of his campaign rallies on Friday, January 8, in South Carolina.
“The image of a Muslim woman being abused and ejected from a political rally sends a chilling message to American Muslims and to all those who value our nation’s traditions of religious diversity and civic participation,” Nihad Awad, National Executive Director of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), said in a statement obtained by AboutIslam.net early on Saturday.
“Donald Trump should issue a public apology to the Muslim woman kicked out of his rally and make a clear statement that American Muslims are welcome as fellow citizens and as participants in the nation’s political process.”
The woman, identified as Rose Hamid, a 56-year-old flight attendant, stood up in silent protest during Trump’s speech.
Though standing in silence, Hamid, who wore a star reminiscent of those worn by Jews during the Holocaust, was escorted by police outside the rally after Trump supporters around her began chanting Trump’s name.
The crowd pointed at Hamid and Marty Rosenbluth, the man alongside her who stood up as well.
As police escorted them out, Trump supporters roared, shouting at them to “get out.” One person shouted, “You have a bomb, you have a bomb,” according to Hamid.
“The ugliness really came out fast and that’s really scary,” Hamid told CNN in a phone interview after she was ejected.
Hamid stressed that she didn’t plan to shout or disrupt the event, adding she simply wanted to give Trump supporters a glimpse of what Muslims are like.
“I figured that most Trump supporters probably never met a Muslim so I figured that I’d give them the opportunity to meet one,” she told CNN, wearing a shirt that read “Salam, I come in peace.”
“I really don’t plan to say anything. I don’t want to be disrespectful but if he says something that I feel needs answering I might — we’ll just see what strikes me.”
Despite of her early leave, Hamid managed to speak with the Trump supporters sitting around her in the stands, several of whom held her hand and said “sorry” as she was forced to leave the venue.
“The people around me who I had an opportunity to talk with were very sweet,” she said.
“The people I did not make contact with, the people who Trump influenced were really nasty.”
One woman Hamid spoke with in line remarked that she “didn’t look scary,” but “like a good one.”
“People don’t have a chance to see anything other than the Muslims they see on TV,” Hamid said, pointing to footage of terrorists and Islamist militants.