Passengers on a train watched on as a helpless Muslim woman was
showered in alcohol in a violent Islamophobic attack, Birmingham
researchers have revealed, reports the Birmingham Mail.
This incident and numerous other attacks on Muslims will be unveiled
in a full report, in the British parliament today.  The report, the
first of its kind, has been commissioned by Tell Mama, an organisation
set up for the reporting of attacks against Muslims.
The woman who was doused in said: “People were watching but they ignored it. No-one wanted to help”.
The study also revealed that many Muslims were reluctant to report
incidents of abuse and often received little support from onlookers.
Another participant told researchers: “A man shouted to me and my
Muslim friends, ‘You are terrorists, I’m gonna come to the back of the
bus and stab you’.
“I told the bus driver and asked him to stop and call the police but he refused.”
As a direct result of attacks, some Muslim women have said they are
removing their headscarves and some men are shaving their beards in a
bid to disguise their Islamic beliefs through fear of being targeted in
religious hate attacks.
The study, which looked at attacks on Muslims both online and “in
real life”, also uncovered evidence that men are especially unwilling to
report attacks through fear of being seen as weak.
Birmingham City University criminologist Imran Awan said: “This
research reveals worrying levels of fear and intimidation experienced by
many Muslims, compounded by a lack of support from the wider public
when facing physical threats in the real world and an absence of tough
action from social media platforms at the abuse people are receiving
online.
“Participants argued that anti-Muslim hate must be challenged from
within Muslim communities – too often reluctant to report abuse or
attacks – and that the public should intervene and assist victims of
anti-Muslim hate where possible.”