Kezi Koshia said she was stunned when she arrived home from work to find that her car was surrounded by police.
“They surrounded my car and I didn’t know what to do, so I had to ask the police, ‘Who are you?
Are you an officer?
Are they a police officer?’
And they said ‘Yes, we are’,” she said.
After a day of confusion and questioning by officers, Koshya found herself facing the wrath of a local racist group.
The group, known as the Knights of the Ku Klux Klan, said they would target her car and her two daughters.
Koshia was at home on Friday morning when the police came to her door.
Officers said they were called to a report of a suspicious vehicle near a shopping centre.
They said Koshiya’s children were inside the car and that she would be held at gunpoint if she refused to leave.
Police then handcuffed Koshias two daughters and dragged her to a police van.
Once inside the police van, Kshia said, officers took away her children, one 16 and the other 13.
When Koshieas kids refused to go back to school, she was put in a holding cell, Kishia said.
“I have two little girls, they are older than me, and I am scared of what they will do to me,” she said, as she sobbed in a hospital bed.
A spokesperson for the Knights said the group was not “aware of any allegations against Ms Koshiah”.
“The Knights are dedicated to the protection and safety of all our members, regardless of race, religion or colour,” the spokesperson said.
“The Knights have never condoned, condoned or condoned violence or discrimination.”
Ms Koshiefia said the incident was the latest in a string of incidents she has experienced since being elected to the Koshies council.
In June, a racist group threatened to rape and kill a local woman.
She said she and her family had been left shaken and scared by the incident.
“We are scared to walk alone,” she told the ABC.
“My children were terrified to walk down the street, my husband was terrified to come outside and they have had some violent confrontations.”
It has been a very difficult week.
“Topics:civic-parties,law-crime-and-justice,race-relations,law—society,community-and -society-and_religion,kansas-city-county,united-statesFirst posted March 09, 2020 19:48:55Contact Sarah LathamMore stories from South Australia