‘I thought she was asking for help or directions’ – young Indian woman racially harassed in Dublin city centre
The 24-year-old data analyst has had a number of people contact her who have had similar experiences with the same individual
It's alarming, it does make you feel unsafe.
A young Indian woman has said she is “still processing” her trauma after she was racially harassed last week.
Swati Verma (24), who is based near St Stephen’s Green in Dublin city centre, was walking home from the gym last Monday evening when a woman she described as “well-dressed” approached her.
The data analyst, from Mumbai, told the Irish Independent: “She said ‘Excuse me, excuse me’, I thought she was probably asking for help or for directions because there was no one on the road.
“I stopped for her and she came up to me, very near to me, and started yelling at me, saying, ‘I just want to ask you, why are you here? Why can’t you be working in your own country, in India? Do you own an Irish passport? Do you have permission to work here? You should go back to your country’.”
Ms Verma added that she felt threatened as the woman was standing in her way, touching her at times and continuing to yell at her. The young woman then began attempting to send voice notes on her phone to her partner, Brian, who was nearby.
“But then I actually asked her if she was OK because she didn’t seem well,” Ms Verma added.
“And then she started yelling at me more after that.”
Ms Verma described how she began to walk away, at which point her partner arrived and spoke to the woman about her behaviour.
Ms Verma said she has had a number of people get in touch with her since her ordeal after she made a social media post about the incident.
“I’ve received messages from about 15 to 20 people who have reached out to me, saying that they know this lady, and they’ve experienced similar encounters with her.”
Some encounters recounted were racially motivated incidents, including people who were physically threatened.
She is concerned that the woman may be experiencing issues with her mental health.
While Ms Verma gave a statement to gardaí last Wednesday evening, she does not wish to pursue the incident further.
“After I gave them a statement, and I mentioned to them clearly that my intention is not to have any action taken on her.
“I just want to document this for the sake of documentation, because a lot of people have experienced this as well.
“But I hope she gets the medical attention that she needs,” she added.
Ms Verma said she is “still processing” the incident but is grateful for the support she has received from others on social media and from her partner and friends.
The harassment Ms Verma experienced comes after a rise in attacks on Indian people in Ireland in recent months.
A group of Indian friends told how they had to run to safety after being attacked by about eight to 10 teenage boys while on their way home from the Odeon cinema in Charlestown, Finglas, last month.
The teenagers harassed the group who were waiting for a bus home. The youths then threw a firework at them, which did not injure anyone.
A woman was racially abused in Dublin and yet she expresses concern for the racist scum that abused her. People like this should be photographed and identified in the newspaper. Screw libel laws. They won’t be long stopping it if their scum faces appear on the front page of a national newspaper.
www.irishtimes.com
