Woman allegedly hits activist with MAGA hat before getting pepper sprayed in DC

A physical confrontation at Washington, D.C.’s Union Station went viral after conservative activist Cam Higby pepper-sprayed a woman who was seen on video allegedly lunging at him and hitting him with his MAGA hat — an incident he said underscores his mission to confront political hostility head-on while promoting open debate through his “Fearless Tour,” inspired by late Turning Point USA founder Charlie Kirk.

Higby, who said his mission is to expose violence on the left and promote peaceful political dialogue, visited Union Station after hosting a debate event Wednesday at the University of Maryland.

In a phone interview Thursday with Fox News Digital, Higby explained the group was sitting and having conversations with nearby protesters when a woman approached him and started being combative.

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“At some point, she dropped to her knees, intentionally … and she started yelling at us and started touching us,” Higby said. “I told her to back up and stop touching me, and she lunged at me and attacked me.”

Video footage captured the woman pushing Higby back in his chair, taking his hat, and hitting him with it before falling into a bush where he pepper-sprayed her.

Higby said it was unclear if the woman had any weapons, as she had her hands in her pockets during the majority of the encounter.

After being pepper sprayed, Higby said the woman walked over to a light pole where other protesters helped to wash her eyes out and called police.

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Initially, it seemed no arrests would occur, but when U.S. Park Police arrived, Higby said the woman allegedly became combative, resisted arrest, and assaulted officers. 

“At this point now, she’s struggling with federal police, and then they tried to arrest her,” he said. “Her dad is yelling at us, ‘why did you spray my daughter,’ as she’s actively fighting with federal police. In my head, I’m thinking, this is why she got sprayed. It took four federal police officers to hold her down, and finally they loaded her into the back of the police car.”

In police reports, Higby said he and his colleague were listed as victims, and she is expected to face federal charges.

U.S. Park Police did not immediately confirm the woman’s identity or charges to Fox News Digital.

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Higby is no stranger to violence, having been allegedly attacked in June at an anti-ICE rally in downtown Seattle.

In the June 14 incident, he was filmed being attacked by three men who tried to rip off his gear, choke and beat him before he pepper-sprayed one assailant in self-defense. 

Higby said he suffered a concussion, dizziness, nausea and other symptoms that required ER and urgent care treatment.

“I’ve come to the point where I carry Mace on me at all times,” he said. “I think I show incredible restraint with the points at which I use my Mace, because I personally think after four verbal warnings not to touch me, it would have been perfectly valid to use it. … The roles are reversed, and I’m overly criticized because it’s a woman, but I don’t know what she has on her, and I’m not going to throw a punch at her. I think that using Mace is way better [alternative].”

On college campuses, Higby and his group have become known for setting up debate tables modeled after Kirk’s style, with signs reading, “The left is violent! Let’s Debate!” 

While critics argue the messaging can spark heated reactions, Higby noted the most recent Union Station incident unfolded without any signage present, where the only thing identifying his group were their MAGA hats.

“We want people fired up. We want people to be excited to talk about political issues, but what we don’t invite people to do is touch us, and that’s the problem,” he said. “I think most of my takes are pretty reasonable. That’s your problem, not my problem—if you have such low impulse control that you can’t stop yourself from using physical violence.”

Fox News Digital’s Kristine Parks and Cortney O’Brien contributed to this report.