Attack against Muslim student in Glendale Heights being investigated

An attack on a Muslim student at Glenside Middle School in Glendale Heights is being investigated by police and school district officials.

Queen Bee School District 16 Superintendent Joe Williams on Monday confirmed the attack against the female Muslim student happened on Thursday.

A video shared Monday by the Council on American-Islamic Relations shows a male student grabbing a female student, who is wearing a hijab, by her head. He puts her in a headlock and then shoves her to the ground. There is no audio for the video.

CAIR Monday issued a statement saying the attack may have occurred because of the girl’s Muslim faith. According to CAIR, the girl is from Saudi Arabia and has lived in the United States for two months. The organization called for a swift investigation and transparency to help “assuage the understandable angst in the affected community and to regain lost trust.”

Williams said District 16 was made aware of the attack when it occurred and police were immediately contacted. He said an investigation has “yielded no evidence” that the attack was racially, culturally or religiously motivated and noted that those involved will be held responsible.

Police could not be immediately reached for comment. The DuPage County State’s Attorney’s Office is investigating it with Glendale Heights police.

Williams said he has been in contact with the families involved and has communicated with district families about the incident. Because the incident involved minor children, the district cannot release information about the students involved.

“It’s unfortunate that this incident happened,” said Sadiq Bekinalkar, president of Masjid Ibrahim in Glendale Heights.

Bekinalkar said he has spoken with members of his mosque about the incident as well as school board and district officials. He noted many of the children from the mosque attend Glenside Middle School, and some students and teachers wear hijabs.

“It has been a very peaceful school,” he said.

CAIR Operations Manager Maggie Slavin said the organization has been in touch with the student’s family. She said the family has declined requests for interviews from the media.

In their statement, CAIR expressed concern about the incident and that other students videotaped the attack. The organization offered anti-bullying and sensitivity training to the district.

“Bullying involves more than the perpetrator,” Slavin said. “Bystanders who watch and accept, or even reward this behavior, make it possible for the bully to carry out their attack. In this case, we see bystander students reinforcing the terrible ambush, filming it, and even gloating about it on social media. This larger culture must be addressed.”