SAN JOSE, Calif. _ Esra Altun was walking back to her car at San Jose State University on Wednesday afternoon when someone grabbed her hijab from behind and yanked it backward.
The 19-year-old sophomore psychology struggled to breathe as the man pulled hard at her head scarf inside the third floor of the West Garage.
"I was trying to gasp for air," Altun said. "I couldn't say or do anything. I was paralyzed."
The attack lasted just a few seconds. Altun fought back by leaning forward, and when her attacker let go she fell hard to her knees.
The attacker did not say a word during attack, Altun said. The attack came a day after the election, which saw a charged presidential campaign season culminate in the election of Republican Donald Trump, who at one point proposed a total ban on the immigration of Muslims to the United States.
University police told Altun they could not treat it as a hate crime, but she believes it was racially motivated.
"It happened a day after Trump was announced as president-elect," Altun said. "If it was for another reason, it's such a weird coincidence."
A Muslim student at San Diego State University was assaulted and robbed in a campus parking lot. Authorities say the woman, who was wearing a hijab, was targeted because of her faith and that the suspects made comments about Trump's election, according to Associated Press.
The assault and robbery are being investigated as a hate crime. The woman was not injured,
The suspects stole her keys and the vehicle was later reported missing, AP reported. In a statement, SDSU President Elliot Hirshman denounced the assault, calling hate crimes destructive to the spirit of the campus.
San Jose State university police issued a campus alert Wednesday about the attack on Altun, which happened at about 1:15 p.m.. She was walking with a group of friends from the Student Union to the garage. She opened her trunk to get something when she her scarf was yanked backward.
Doaa Abdelrahman, president of the Muslim Student Association at San Jose State, also believes the attack was related to the election and Trump's campaign. She said racism has always existed, but now "it's fueled by Trump."
"I've experienced racism for my religion since age 9," Abdelrahman said. "I think Trump is the cause of a lot of segregation and division between people.
"I think racism always occurs around the world. This is a topic that needs to be addressed. I'm glad it's out in the surface."
University spokeswoman Pat Harris said the case remains under investigation.
"We are of course very concerned that this has occurred on our campus. No one should experience this kind of behavior at San Jose State," she said, adding that the university "encourages faculty, staff and students to report all incidents so that we can track trends and respond appropriately in addition to conducting investigations of all cases."
In the first 24 hours after the attack, Altun said she has received tremendous support from the SJSU community, including people offering to walk her to her car.
"On Twitter, people were posting about it and they were outraged," Altun said. "They don't even know who I am. That's an amazing thing to see. And I hope that support goes out to every group that needs it."
San Jose State students reacted to Trump's election by staging a rally early Wednesday morning at the Tommie Smith and John Carlos statue. The event was largely peaceful, though a fight did break out between Trump supporters and other students.
The university followed-up with an open mic at 11:30 a.m. at the Student Union and held a "guided conversation" at 7 p.m. at the statue. Harris estimated that 300 people attended the latter event.
In a message to the campus community, SJSU President Mary Papazian recalled President Barack Obama's remarks Wednesday that "We are not Democrats first. We are not Republicans first. We are Americans first."
"To the president's comments, I would add this: as members of the San Jose State community, we, too all are members of one team, and one family," she wrote. "And, as a community devoted to preparing students to be engaged, informed citizens, it is critically important that we provide ample room for diverse opinions to be expressed safely and civilly."
