The North American Muslim Foundation (NAMF) says a woman who was punched in the face while exiting a TTC bus in Scarborough, Ont., on Wednesday may have been targeted due to her faith.
At a news conference Thursday, a spokesperson for the group said the victim was getting off a bus near Finch Avenue East and Midland Avenue at approximately 8:15 a.m. when she was struck by an unknown male who was entering the vehicle.
“(The victim), who is visibly Muslim and wears the hijab, was taken to hospital, where she was informed that she had had a concussion,” Emad Ali told reporters.
Ali said the incident occurred “without any apparent provocation.”
He added that the TTC bus driver did not stop the bus following the incident, although it’s unclear if they were aware of what had just occurred. No one intervened following the interaction, Ali said.
“We are deeply concerned that this assault may have been motivated by anti-Muslim hate and Islamophobia,” he said.
Scarborough-Agincourt Coun. Nick Mantas was also present at Thursday’s news conference, and called the incident “deeply disturbing.”
“A young woman should be able to get off a TTC bus, walk through her community, and return home without fearing that she will be physically attacked,” he said.
“No one in Toronto should feel unsafe because of who they are, how they dress, their faith, their culture, of their background. The circumstances surrounding this incident must be fully investigated by Toronto Police, including whether hate or bias played any role.”
TTC has video of the incident
In a statement to CTV News, the TTC condemned the attack.
“Everyone riding on (or working for) the TTC deserves to both be safe and feel safe at all times when on our property or vehicles,” spokesperson Stuart Green said. “Safety is the cornerstone of everything we do, and we want to assure the victims of this assault that the matter is being treated seriously.”
Green said the TTC downloaded and preserved video of the incident immediately after it was reported. That footage has now been made available to Toronto police, he said.
“Quite often, they will use our video to produce stills that will identify the suspect and lead to an arrest. As always, we will support the investigation into this matter in the hopes of justice being served as swiftly as possible,” he said.
CTV News Toronto has reached out to Toronto police for comment on the investigation, including whether the incident is being investigated as potentially motivated by hate, but has not yet received a response.
