Nicki Pancholy had been hiking up Mission Peak in Fremont, California for the past 49 days, and when she returned to retrieve her car, she found the windows had been broken and a note left on the vehicle which read:
“Hijab wearing bitch this is our nation now get the f— out.”
Pancholy isn’t Muslim, and she wasn’t wearing a hijab. She suffers from the lupus and merely had a covering on her head to protect her from the sun. She said the incident left her shocked and saddened:
“When I saw it, I was in shock. That someone would feel so much hate to do this. I realize that this is the climate after this election. But I didn’t realize someone would be so ignorant and in so much pain to cause so much harm.”
After reporting the crime to police, Pancholy posted a video on Facebook in which she said she was praying for the “well-being” of whoever smashed her windshield:
Ms. Pancholy also told a local TV station that her ethnicity is Rajastani Indian, and that her religion is love, not Islam.
Police are investigating the incident as a hate crime.
Ever since the election of Donald Trump last week, crimes such as this have been taking place across the country. It’s beyond time for President-elect Trump to make a speech in which he rejects this kind of hatred. He could even go to a mosque and make a declaration of peace in the face of this violence. It would go a long way toward letting some of these people who commit such acts in his name know that their actions are unforgivable and will be dealt with in the harshest of legal terms. Will he? I seriously doubt it, but I remain hopeful.
Featured Image Via Facebook
