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A smartphone video captured a terrifying scene as a transgender woman is punched and kicked by multiple attackers in broad daylight surrounded by a crowd of onlookers.
The assault on Muhlaysia Booker, 23, occurred after an apparently minor traffic accident outside the Royal Crest Apartments Dallas, Texas.
The attackers allegedly used homophobic slurs during the assault and were 'known suspects,' according to the police. Authorities are investigating the incident to determine if it is a hate crime.
Footage from the attack posted on Friday to Facebook shows a crowd of people form around the site of the accident and Booker who is wearing a pink wig and blue tank-top.At points she appears to be saying something to the gathering onlookers, but her voice can't be made out in the available footage.
The video appears to flip into selfie mode, where the person recording appears to be laughing with a man in a white shirt and pants.
That same individual in white later appears to charge Booker, throwing her to the ground. He then punches her repeatedly as two or three other individuals join in to kick her while she is down on the ground.
Some voices can be heard screaming for the attack to stop, and eventually Booker, after having been beaten across the parking lot of the apartment complex, is aided by a group of women who get her into a car before taking her to a hospital.A family member said Booker received facial fractures and has her arm in a sling following the frightening mob assault, according to WFAA.
The video of the incident posted by a Facebook user Taj Mahal has garnered over 90,000 views.
It was accompanied with the caption 'THIS IS A HATE CRIME! Muhlaysia Booker Don't Worry Sis I Got The Video For Dallas Police Department This Is A Hate Crime And Everyone Who Participated Will Be Prosecuted!'
Pierre Booker, Muhlaysia's father, called the person responsible for the attack a 'coward,' and told NBCDFW that his daughter has faced hatred for being a transgender woman in the past. All I tell them you know is I love them. I love them for whoever they are. And I'm not God, I'm not the judge, I'm not the jury,' Muhlaysia's grandmother added, as she hoped police view the attack as a hate crime.
'So all I pray is for these people to find it in their hearts to accept people just like God does.'
Mayor Mike Rawlings of Dallas posted a statement to Facebook saying that he watched the video and was angered by what appeared to be 'mob violence' directed against the woman.
'I am in contact with the chief and she assured me that the Dallas Police Department is fully investigating, including the possibility that this was a hate crime,' wrote Mayor Rawlings.
'Those who did this do not represent how Dallasites feel about our thriving LGBTQ community. We will not stand for this kind of behavior.'