Austria : A Muslim newborn criticized on social media because of her mother’s hijab

An Austrian infant, the first newborn baby in the country in 2018, was the subject of racist comments on social media because of a photo posted on Facebook of her veiled mother, reports to the French daily CNews Matin.

Hateful comments that the Catholic NGO Caritas, who assists refugees and migrants, has strongly denounced. «Hate on the internet has reached a totally new dimension by targeting an innocent newborn», said Klaus Schwertner, the head of Caritas. He denounced «the crossing of a red line». The association has launched a support campaign for the child and his parents.

The Facebook page had collected more than 20,000 messages of support and sympathy, before being finally removed by the social network. The head of the NGO believes that this deactivation is the result of numerous reports. «Dear Mark Zuckerberg, what's going on ? I cannot believe it : my message for a #flowerrain for Asel the New Year's baby and his parents disappeared tonight! Do not let it go! We want to show that love is superior to hatred, in real life as on Facebook», he wrote.

Austrian President Alexander Van der Bellen, a liberal ecologist, also made a comment, congratulating Asel, born at 00:47 on 1 January. «Welcome, dear Asel !», he wrote on Facebook, before reminding the authors of these racist comments that «all men are born free and equal».