Group praises employees who shielded hijab-wearing shopper

A civil rights group is praising the response of employees at a New Mexico grocery store when a woman yelled at a hijab-wearing shopper, saying she was a terrorist.

The Council on American-Islamic Relations says the “collective defense” provided Wednesday at a Smith’s store in Albuquerque by employees who gathered in front of the hijab-wearing shopper sets an example for others.

Hijabs are headscarves worn by some Muslim women.

Store manager Andrew Castillo says the woman yelled racist things and that other people in the store then shouted at the woman to leave the shopper alone.

Employees walked the shopper to her car so she couldn’t be accosted outside by the woman who had left the store but remained in the parking area.

The woman left before police arrived.