Idris Elba's wife Sabrina fumes after 'racist' interaction with woman who hit her car and asked 'where are you from?'
The woman backed into her parked car, then tried to "change the terms of the interaction", she said in a TikTok video
Sir Idris Elba's wife Sabrina Dhowre Elba has expressed fury after a "racist" interaction with a "hostile" woman who crashed into her parked car in London.
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The model and activist said the driver repeatedly asked where she was from in the "upsetting" incident.
The 36-year-old, who married Idris in 2019, said it shows how "people feel increasingly comfortable treating black and brown people as conditional citizens".
The woman backed into her parked car, then tried to "change the terms of the interaction", the Canadian said in a TikTok video.
"She very quickly asked me, ‘Where are you from?’ - keep in mind this woman backed up into my parked car - and I said, ‘Canadian' and then she asked again.
"And I think a lot of people know what that question means when they're asked in a tone."
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Sabrina, who has lived in London with Idris for their entire nine-year relationship, pointed out "racism isn't always theatrical".
“Sometimes it works by redirecting conversations because you ask for accountability and suddenly my presence became the issue.”
She said it was vital to discuss the exchange in the context of the country's current climate, where political parties have “spent years publicly debating” who “belongs” and who is considered “too foreign”.
People "feel entitled to interrogate you", she said.
Sabrina, who is working alongside her husband on anti-knife crime campaigning in London, reiterated: “Incidents can kind of get dismissed as like personality but misunderstanding is not just misunderstanding anymore, it's starting to feel like a pattern.
“That pattern is what's making people feel increasingly comfortable treating black and brown people as conditional citizens as conditional neighbours or conditional Londoners.
“And you can live here and work here and contribute here and build a life here but in the wrong moment with the wrong person belonging is still treated like something they have the rights to question and I think that's what upset me.”
The woman drove away after the incident, Sabrina said, but there was little damage.
Her comments were flooded with supportive messages, with others recounted their own personal experiences of similar situations.
Sabrina is a co-founder of S'ABLE Labs, her and Idris' skincare and wellness brand. She is also a United Nations goodwill ambassador for the International Fund for Agricultural Development.
She also works alongside her husband on anti-knife crime campaigning, including their new project - creating a cultural venue in North Kensington based on the kind of multicultural environment Idris grew up around in Hackney.
Idris was awarded a knighthood in the New Year Honours for his significant services to young people.