Evening Standard - London, November 28th, 2001
IT was the first racist attack I'd witnessed. I was sitting at a pavement cafe in Holland Park, sipping a cappuccino in the bright spring sunshine. Just a few feet away from me was a group of lads, none of them older than 15. They had picked up a couple of dustbins and were throwing the contents at an Asian shopkeeper.
"You f***ing Paki!" cried out one.
"We're going to get you. We're going to smash your windows." Anyone would have been shocked, but the incident left me particularly shaken.
For I knew I was going to find myself in the shopkeeper's shoes a few days later.
I'm a journalist, a...
HighBeam Research, Free Preview: 'I 'overcharged' a customer. So he threw a brick at my window Racist taunts, violent threats - and broken glass. Undercover reporter Saira Khan spent three months discovering what life can be like for Britain's Asian shopkeepers'... Full Membership required for unlimited access. Free 7-day trial.
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