Man Threatens Woman Pushing Stroller, Calling Her 'Mexican Freeloader,' County Supervisor Alleges

LOS ANGELES, CA -- Pointing to a series of hate crimes reported in the days following last week's election, a county supervisor Tuesday previewed what she said will be an official call for residents and law enforcement agencies to stand up for people who are targeted.

Supervisor Hilda Solis said she has received several reports of "acts of hate, harassment and bullying throughout the county" since the election.

The day after the election, a woman in Azusa was pushing a stroller along a sidewalk when a gray-haired man in a red pickup truck pulled alongside, got out of the truck and said, "Get out of my country you ... You Mexicans infest this country and are all freeloaders," before throwing a cup of soda on the woman, Solis said.

Before driving away, the man added, "You're lucky. If I would have had my gun, it would have gone worse for you," according to Solis, who said the report came from the Sheriff's Department.

"Other reported incidents include a Muslim-American high school student in the San Fernando Valley who had her head scarf yanked off before being called a `terrorist' and being told, `You shouldn't be wearing that, you towel- head. You're not American. This isn't what America stands for.' Another incident involved an African-American man who found a note slipped under his door telling him to `go back to the plantation,' and a physical education teacher at a South Los Angeles middle school who told his Latino students that their parents would be deported, leaving them to be placed in foster care," Solis said.

Solis said Los Angeles residents pride themselves on inclusiveness, diversity and respect for one another.

In a motion titled "Halting the Post-Election Hate Crimes," set to be heard next week, Solis said practices developed in the wake of the San Bernardino terrorist attack should be reviewed and re-adopted.

She plans to ask for her colleagues for support in calling on all county residents and departments to speak out against acts of bullying, discrimination and hate violence. Solis also wants the Sheriff's Department and other law enforcement agencies to reassure targeted communities and encourage reporting of hate crimes.

"We cannot tolerate these loathsome acts of hate, discrimination, bullying and harassment," Solis said. "We must not yield to the forces of scapegoating and intolerance."

City News Service; Photo: Image via Gage Skidmore