Authorities said Wednesday that a hateful stranger ripped the hijab off a teenager’s head on a Manhattan street last month and yelled, “You don’t have to wear a hijab here.”
Police say a grinning man ran up to an unsuspecting 17-year-old girl and snatched her covers around noon on April 28 on East 44th Street near Second Avenue in Tudor City.
Police said the suspect, who was seen on surveillance footage with a wide grin on his face, then fled northbound on Second Avenue.
Officials said it was unclear whether he threw the hijab to the ground or fled with it.
The NYPD’s Hate Crimes Task Force is investigating the daylight incident.
The attack comes as hate crimes continue to spike across the Big Apple during the deadly Israel-Hamas war.
Anti-Muslim incidents have jumped 175% this year compared to the same period in 2023, with 11 attacks reported through the end of April, according to NYPD data.
