The election is over and Donald Trump has won, sending young liberals into a panic that has resulted in riots, fires and property destruction.
We knew the media would be anxious to hear reports of racist, sexist, bigoted Trump supporters attacking anyone who wasn’t white or male. So far, few accusations of such have come in.
And one that was reported turned out to be a hoax.
Of course the media ran with the accusation, with headlines asserting the claim was factual, not alleged, like this one from NBC: “Muslim women wearing hijabs assaulted just hours after Trump win.”
The article details three accusations, but notes that the third was a hoax. A University of Louisiana-Lafayette student claimed two men — one wearing a white “Trump” hat — attacked her and stole her wallet and hijab. She had said the men drove up in their car, jumped out to accost her and shouted racial obscenities as they attacked her.
The other two accusations reported by NBC may have happened, police are still investigating. Another Muslim student at San Diego State University claimed two men followed her while talking about Trump and Muslims. She said they then stole her purse and her car keys. She later reported her vehicle missing.
At San Jose University, a Muslim student said a man ran up to her and pulled her hijab, choking her.
If those last two events occurred, they are horrific and unacceptable. But it’s difficult to believe the accusations when someone else has lied and when so many “hate crimes” on college campuses and elsewhere turn out to be hoaxes. Some of them are even elaborate.
Again, two accusations have not been proven false, and could be true, but with so many hoaxes — and the current environment of high tensions following Trump’s election — people should be skeptical of anyone claiming to be the victim of a hate crime. That goes for Trump supporters as well. I’ve grown skeptical of all accusations, since so many that get media attention turn out to be false.
When an accusation lines up perfectly with one’s preferred narrative, it should be double checked. Rarely do crimes fit so neatly into pre-packaged narratives.
Ashe Schow is a commentary writer for the Washington Examiner.
