Middle Eastern collegiates:
fearing reprisals, several leave South Carolina

Fearful of becoming victims of hate crimes, more than a dozen Middle Easterners who had been attending colleges in the Midlands have left the country since the September 11 terrorist attacks against the United States.

Some students, however, did not make it out before being victimized by misdirected reprisals.

“President Bush said it is not a war against Muslims or Islam, but it feels like it is,” says Ruay Adly, a student at Midlands Technical College in Columbia. “When Timothy McVeigh bombed the federal building in Oklahoma no one said, ‘Look at what this Christian did.’”

Adly, an American Muslim who has lived in Columbia all her life, says she is concerned about her safety, especially since a few local Arabs reported they have been targets of violence and harassment.

At the University of South Carolina in Columbia, administrators know of 12 Middle Easterners who have fled to their home countries, according to university spokesman Russ McKinney. Prior to the attacks, 83 Middle Easterners were attending USC, McKinney says.

Wafaa Alghamdi, a Muslim woman who had been enrolled in graduate school at USC, returned to Saudi Arabia after reporting that four white male students verbally assaulted her and tried to remove her hijab – Islamic head covering – while she was on campus Sept. 12.

University police referred questions about the incident to McKinney. “The incident is under investigation, “ McKinney says. “It has not been substantiated by witnesses. That is not to say that we don’t believe this happened.” The alleged perpetrators have not been found, and USC has received only one other report of harassment against a Middle Eastern student, he says, adding that it centered on heckling.

Asked if USC considers the occurrences to be hate crimes, McKinney says, “No, not at this time.”

Meanwhile, McKinney says USC has no information about Wafaa Alghamdi’s brother, whom the FBI detained when he tried to leave the country with his sister. He is being held in Atlanta. “Any information we have about the brother we’ve heard from students,” McKinney says, adding that the FBI is not releasing information about people who are being detained in connection with the attacks.

The siblings have the same last name as Saeed Alghamdi, whom federal officials have identified as one of the 19 terrorists involved in the attacks.

Abdulrahman Jarad, who is pursuing a doctorate in geology at USC, says a friend of his was recently attacked near campus. “My friend, Ahmad Alriasi, an undergraduate student in business, was getting food at a place near the university when four men said bad things to him,” Jarad says. “He spoke back and they attacked him, hitting him and then ran away. He called the campus police who said many hate crime had already happened. He returned home to Oman.”

McKinney says he has not heard about Alriasi’s experience and that it was not reported to campus police.

The Columbia Police Department is "not aware of" any report of attacks on Muslims, according to Leshia Utsey, a spokeswoman for the city of Columbia.

Jarad says he wants to leave the country as soon as possible. “I am thinking of taking my daughter and wife back home (to Saudi Arabia),” Jarad says. “I might stay and take classes there and return for my dissertation.” He says that since the attacks he has kept his 3-year-old daughter home from pre-kindergarten classes at the Islamic Academy of Columbia because he fears for her safety.

In addition, Jarad says he knows about 10 Middle Eastern college students who are returning home. “They are leaving because of backlashes and fear for their physical safety,” Jarad says. “Some report the abuse. Some don’t. Outside of campus, many times people say something bad like ‘go home’ and ‘you are tourists.’ Also I have received many good words, too. I have a good image of American people who are concerned about our suffering.”

Adly, the Midlands Tech student, says two of her classmates have returned to Qatar, while another friend, a USC student, has gone back to the United Arab Emirates. Adly also says three friend of hers in the Middle East have canceled plans to come to USC. “Their parents are really scared for their safety,” Adly says. “It is very sad to see my friends leave. They gave away everything and broke their leases. Can you imagine having to leave right away with only a suitcase?”

Adly says a male student made rude comments to her right after she heard about the Sept. 11 attacks, in which about 3,000 people perished. But otherwise, she says, “I feel very safe, especially on campus. Midlands Tech is a really small school. It’s not easy for someone to harass a student and get away with it.”

Midlands Tech spokesman Todd Gavin says he knows of only one Middle Eastern student who has returned home. "This student said he suffered no harassment, but was returning home to Qatar at the urging of his parents," Gavin says.