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Student claims "hate crime" at Cranbrook Schools

Posted at 11:32 AM, Jun 09, 2016
and last updated 2016-06-09 18:22:51-04

It was late May when a 17 year old graduating senior at Cranbrook Schools says she was walking the campus with her mother.
    
"As we were leaving the parking lot we heard a few boys scream out allahu akbar," the teen says.

Later that same day, she says she left her dorm to take a run.

"As I was going through a trail, I was approached by five guys about 17 or 18, ...they surrounded me. They started screaming racial and religious slurs, such as "Arab go back to your country, you don't belong here."

She says, "It was absolutely terrifying. I tried to run away, they shoved me back."

The Muslim teen says she reported it to the school. They showed her a yearbook in an attempt to identify if it was in fact students who assaulted her. But she was unable to identify anyone.

The school released a statement, pushing back against the claims, saying in part, "We are surprised and disappointed to hear these inflammatory allegations that are inconsistent with the ongoing police and school investigation. We have long celebrated the value of diversity in all of its forms and absolutely do not tolerate acts of harassment or discrimination."

Action News spoke with Bloomfield Hills police. They say, while there is no video evidence of what happened, they take the charge seriously and are actively investigating.

Meanwhile, the student, who asked we not use her name, has the support of the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee.

"We would hope a prestigious institution like Cranbrook, would do everything it needs to do to find out who these boys were," said attorney Fatina Abdrabboh with the group.