Today News Africa reporter Simon Ateba says that he was “attacked” after a woman at a Washington, D.C. bus stop happened to glimpse at his phone and saw that he was conversing with a friend who was a supporter of former President Donald J. Trump.
On Saturday, Ateba took to X, formerly Twitter, where he posted a short video of him confronting the alleged attacker after they got off the bus, asking her about her remarks on a blustery day in the nation’s capital only to be told that she could have him “locked up” for recording her without her consent.
Ateba, who has frequently clashed with White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre, wrote that he was on a video call with a friend when the apparent stranger was triggered, referring to the person on the other end in racist terms and suggested that her hatred for Trump is proof that he won’t be able to get a fair trial due to the poisoned jury pool in the DC area.
I was just attacked in Washington DC because of Trump. After my morning jog, I was on a video call with a friend in Florida who was wearing Trump cap and a lady who joined me at the bus stop went into a rage. She called my friend a white b..tch wearing the m..fckr devil. Are you… pic.twitter.com/Vn8cCUq7Ps
— Simon Ateba (@simonateba) September 23, 2023
“I was just attacked in Washington DC because of Trump. After my morning jog, I was on a video call with a friend in Florida who was wearing Trump cap and a lady who joined me at the bus stop went into a rage. She called my friend a white b..tch wearing the m..fckr devil. Are you supporting him? Are you? She asked me. She said it was the worst thing she has seen today,” Ateba wrote, sharing the footage of the woman’s threat to have him tossed into jail.
In a second post he added, “It was so shocking that after we got off the bus I asked her to repeat what she said, she went into a rage, threatened to even ‘lock me up’ for recording her. Haha! This is for you to understand how deep propaganda has spread here and how tough the battle ahead will be,” he said, pointing out just how poisonously anti-Trump the Beltway atmosphere is.”
Remember, I was not the one wearing the cap. She saw it very briefly on my phone and went into a rage. I don’t know what would have happened if I were the one wearing it. It’s a bit unbelievable that Trump could get a fair trial here as the judges may also face consequences if…
— Simon Ateba (@simonateba) September 23, 2023
“Remember, I was not the one wearing the cap. She saw it very briefly on my phone and went into a rage. I don’t know what would have happened if I were the one wearing it. It’s a bit unbelievable that Trump could get a fair trial here as the judges may also face consequences if ruling does not go as widely ‘expected’ here…..My friend who was on the phone with me is also a journalist connected with me here on X,” he wrote. “Just so you understand, people are being attacked for simply wearing a hat or cap, for their political views, not for saying or doing anything to anyone, just minding their business! Tough election ahead, folks! Just support independent journalists and others as much as you can. Propaganda is deep!!!!”
In another post to X, Ateba reacted to a left-leaning website over its story on the encounter, accusing it of a “false” headline to make it appear that he chased the woman down, stating that he was walking home when the incident took place.
“This is a false headline by @mediaite. I did not chase her. It’s just the way to my house. I was just walking home. People should be tolerant and no one should be attacked for wearing a Trump hat or cap. Calling me ‘infamous’ is shameful!” Ateba wrote.
This is a false headline by @mediaite. I did not chase her. It’s just the way to my house. I was just walking home. People should be tolerant and no one should be attacked for wearing a Trump hat or cap. Calling me ‘infamous’ is shameful!https://t.co/dBf7CFURvu via @mediaite
— Simon Ateba (@simonateba) September 24, 2023
“Someone said, ‘If I was that scared, I wouldn’t have chased her.’ First, I was not scared. Second, I was not chasing her. That’s where I live; it’s just the way to my house. I am simply walking home behind her. We just exited the bus, nothing else. We should all be tolerant, regardless of our political views. We cannot impose our views on others. It’s as simple as that,” the reporter wrote in another X post.
When Trump is hauled in front of a kangaroo court next year for charges related to the so-called “insurrection” of January 6, 2021, the greatest threat to his continued freedom won’t come from the underhanded legal tactics of Special Counsel Jack Smith or the political biases of the Obama-appointed judge but rather from the jury that holds his fate in their hands, one drawn from an area where the vast majority of the population holds views just like the woman on the bus.
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