Euless, Texas – President Joe Biden expressed his concern Monday following an incident at a swimming pool where a 42-year-old woman in Texas was accused of attempting to drown a Palestinian American girl. The President took to social media to address the attack, stating that no child should ever be subjected to violence.
The incident occurred in Euless, a Dallas suburb, on May 19, prompting calls for a hate crime investigation from the local chapter of CAIR, the Council on American-Islamic Relations. According to reports, the young girl and her family, who are Muslim, were confronted while the mother was wearing a hijab.
Police reports from Euless stated that the 3-year-old girl was at the pool with her 6-year-old brother and their mother when Elizabeth Wolf approached them. Wolf allegedly asked the mother about her origins and if the children were hers before making a violent move towards them.
The girl’s mother recounted to authorities that Wolf seized the young boy momentarily before turning her attention to the 3-year-old and forcing her underwater. Fortunately, the mother was able to intervene, pulling her daughter out of harm’s way. Both children were checked by medics and deemed physically unharmed.
Wolf was taken into custody on suspicion of public intoxication initially, but was later charged with attempted capital murder and injury to a child. Police reported that Wolf made derogatory comments about the family’s background and nationality during the altercation.
In a statement released by CAIR, the mother expressed her distress, indicating that her daughter is suffering from trauma as a result of the attack. She emphasized the family’s American citizenship, originally from Palestine, and the struggles they face in finding a sense of security in their own country amidst rising hate and discrimination.