Condemn the attack on Mrs. Afaf Saudi

For Immediate Release, Nov 8, 2004

For more information call Scott Trent, 336-558-8066

or Badi Ali, 336-988-0818


The October 22nd Coalition to Stop Police Brutality and the Islamic Center of the Triad stand together in strongly condemning the vicious attack on Mrs.Afaf Saudi on Saturday, November 7th, 2004. There is no possible justification for the brute force that was used in the arrest of Mrs. Saudi that resulted in her multiple injuries, including a fractured arm and bruised ribs.



Mrs. Saudi, who is sixty-seven years old and in very poor physical health, was reportedly hog-tied and tossed like an animal into a police cruiser after having been violently detained by a Greensboro police officer at the Wal-Mart on Battleground Ave. We know that there is no possible justification for this type of treatment by the police. We are also aware that police brutality and killings have increased dramatically in recent years, and that since September 11th, 2001 a vicious new form of racial profiling has been put into effect against Arab, Muslim, and South Asian immigrants. We will not stand idly by as this epidemic of police brutality and expanded racial profiling spirals violently out of control.



The October 22nd Coalition and the Islamic Center of the Triad stand together in firm solidarity, and call on the entire community to speak out in condemnation of this brutal attack on Mrs. Saudi. We require at the very minimum an apology to Mrs. Saudi in Arabic or French (the two languages she speaks), and a clear statement on how the officers involved will be disciplined.