A woman has spoken of her terror after she claims she was subjected to vile racist abuse, had rocks thrown at her car and watched a man attempt to smash her window during a road rage confrontation on the East Lancashire Road. The incident, which was captured on video, has sparked outrage online, attracting thousands of views and comments.
Aisha Mado was driving home on October 8 when the journey turned into an ordeal that left her shaken, anxious and struggling to feel safe. Her mother was in the passenger seat, and young children were also travelling in the car.
What Happened During the Confrontation
The confrontation began after Aisha moved into the right-hand lane to overtake a coach. Having checked it was safe to move across, she noticed a van approaching rapidly behind her. As traffic slowed and vehicles began changing lanes, tensions escalated.
According to Aisha, the van driver pulled alongside her, opened his window and began shouting racist abuse at her and her mother. She recalls being called “P**i B****es”. But it was what happened next that left her fearing for her family's safety.
“He started to throw rocks at my vehicle while I was still moving,” she said. “I was in shock. I'm talking, he wanted to full-on smash my window in.”
The driver then allegedly attempted to smash her window and threw objects towards the car, including in the direction of her mother. Aisha remembers trying to make him understand that children were inside the vehicle.
“When I attempted to open my window to shout, I've got kids in the car, what are you doing? He tried to aim for my mum's face, who was in the passenger seat with me.”
Impact on Family and Viral Attention
Hoping the driver would stop, she eventually moved behind his vehicle. However, the confrontation continued when they reached traffic lights. The man allegedly continued throwing rocks and coins at her car before getting out of his vehicle. Aisha acknowledges that she also shouted insults during the confrontation as tensions reached breaking point.
She claims he then struck her window, 'whacked' her wing mirror off and threw further objects at her vehicle before driving away. “I was just left with crying babies, you know, me and my mum were shook, and I had a broken wing mirror,” she said. “I had a 50-minute journey to make home.”
Aisha says the incident has left the two-year-old in the car particularly distressed, with the youngster becoming upset whenever she gets into a car. “I have a two-year-old that's literally traumatised, has been crying since when we've gotten in the car, saying the man's coming, the man kicked the window. That's not okay. She's two years old.”
The anxiety has also forced Aisha to take time off work. She believes the abuse was racially motivated and has questioned why anyone would behave so aggressively towards a family simply trying to get home. She also believes her age and gender may have played a part in how she was treated.
Police Response and Call for Action
In the aftermath, Aisha contacted Greater Manchester Police and urged officers to take action. The driver was arrested and subsequently released on bail, but Aisha says she has been left frustrated by what she describes as a lack of communication and uncertainty surrounding the investigation.
Footage of the confrontation has attracted widespread attention online, receiving thousands of views and generating a significant number of comments across social media. The online backlash has reportedly extended beyond the video itself, with the man's business profile subsequently being removed.
However, Aisha fears that the viral attention will not necessarily lead to accountability or prevent similar incidents from happening again. “Clearly, like him going viral, just it won't stop him,” she said. “Honestly, it won't stop someone like that.”
Despite the distress, Aisha has decided to speak publicly about her experience in the hope that raising awareness will encourage people to take racist abuse and aggression on the roads seriously, while ensuring victims feel supported when they come forward. She also wants greater reassurance that incidents involving threats and violence against families will be properly investigated.
A spokesperson for Greater Manchester Police told Manchester Evening News: "A man was arrested on 14 October after handing himself in at a police station. He has been bailed pending further enquiries with conditions not to contact anyone associated with the investigation."
