Category Archives: Women

Bushra wins!

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Bushra Noah“Discrimination in all its forms is unacceptable. The Zeitgeist is Islamophobia and given this fact we applaud young Bushra Noah’s determination to seek justice.

“A lot of nonsense has been said by people who ‘wouldn’t get their hair cut from a hairdresser who’s hair you can’t see’. Well there are a lot of bald hair dressers out there such as Trevor Sorbie and you don’t see customers fearing they are about to shave their heads.

“The attacks on Bushra are nothing other than Islamophobia unleashed against a young Muslim female trying to earn an honest living.”

MPACUK, 17 June 2008

Over at the increasingly demented Harry’s Place Brett Lock of OutRage! offers his entirely predictable take on the case:

“Why should a hairdressing salon carry even the risk of losing business because an irrational third party who as [sic] decided that showing hair is sinful and thus must be covered up at all times wants to work in the trade? Surely the the person making bizarre lifestyle choices based on their irrational fears and superstitions should carry the consequent risks and inconveniences – and and not expect someone else to?”

Lenin’s Tomb hails Bushra’s victory as “a boost for workers everywhere, particularly female workers who are often the target of sexist dress code policies that insist they wear a skirt and so forth. Previous challenges to such policies have been difficult to sustain, but this lays down a precedent. So, not just a victory against blatant employer Islamophobia, but also something that working people will find useful if they want to challenge their employers on discriminatory dress codes.”

Muslim stylist wins £4,000 payout

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Bushra_NoahThe owner of a hair salon has been ordered to pay £4,000 compensation to a Muslim stylist who was turned down for a job because she wears a headscarf.

Bushra Noah accused Sarah Desrosiers of religious discrimination when she failed to offer her a job at her Wedge salon in King’s Cross, central London. An employment tribunal panel dismissed the 19-year-old’s claim but upheld her complaint of indirect discrimination.

Ms Desrosiers said she needed stylists to showcase alternative hairstyles.

During the hearing Ms Noah, who lives in Acton, west London, told the tribunal that she was “devastated” that she was not offered the job of assistant stylist “due to my headscarf”.

Ms Desrosiers, 32, told the panel that Ms Noah lived too far away, but was persuaded to give her an interview in May last year.

When the applicant arrived for the interview she claimed the Canadian salon owner was clearly shocked by the fact she wore a headscarf. Ms Desrosiers told the tribunal she was surprised it had not been mentioned earlier and expected her staff to reflect the “funky, urban” image of her salon.

The panel found that Ms Noah had been badly upset by the 15-minute interview. She was awarded £4,000 damages for “injury to feelings”.

In its judgment, the panel stated: “We were satisfied by the respondent’s evidence that the claimant was not treated less favourably than the respondent would have treated a woman who, whether Muslim or not, for a reason other than religious belief wears a hair covering at all times when at work.”

It added: “There was no specific evidence before us as to what would (for sure) have been the actual impact of the claimant working in her salon with her head covered at all times.”

Speaking after the ruling the salon owner said: “I never in a million years dreamt that somebody would be completely against the display of hair and be in this industry. I don’t feel I deserve it.”

Ms Noah refused to comment on the matter.

BBC News, 16 June 2008

Ireland: 48% support right to wear hijab in schools

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Almost half of people feel the wearing of hijabs or headscarves by Muslim students should be allowed in State schools, according to the latest Irish Times /TNS mrbi poll. While 48 per cent agree with their use in State schools, 39 per cent do not and 13 per cent have no opinion.

A breakdown of the figures show that while a clear majority of younger people agree with the use of hijabs, older people are more likely to be opposed.

Green Party voters are among the most likely to agree (69 per cent), followed by Sinn Féin and Independents (57 per cent) and Fianna Fáil (48 per cent). Labour and Fine Gael voters are split evenly.

Women are more likely to agree (55 per cent) compared with men (42 per cent).

People are also divided on whether the Government should produce guidelines on the wearing of hijabs in State schools. A total of 49 per cent agree that the State should provide guidelines, while 41 per cent feel the State should not get involved in the issue and 10 per cent have no opinion.

The poll was conducted last Tuesday and Wednesday among a representative sample of 1,000 voters in face-to-face interviews at 100 sampling points in all 43 constituencies.

Minister for Education Batt O’Keeffe has said that the Government will consider whether to issue guidelines on the wearing of the hijab in schools when it drafts an intercultural education strategy later this year.

Some teachers’ groups and the State’s advisory body on interculturalism have signalled that national guidelines should be avoided and the issue should be dealt with on a case by case basis.

The poll indicates that there is little difference on the issue between rural and urban areas. When broken down by social class, people from better-off backgrounds were more likely to agree with the use of the headscarf or hijab.

Irish Times, 9 June 2008

‘Symbolism of hijab’

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Remember this article calling for the hijab to be banned from Irish schools? And this report that Ireland’s opposition parties backed the proposal? As a contribution to the “debate” the Irish Independent has published a letter from a US reader in support of a ban: “Like it or not, the hijab is a symbol of a culture that promotes the murder of innocents and mutilation…. The culture of the hijab is against the liberal principles of Western culture…. Ireland has an opportunity to take an early stand against a culture that threatens the West with violence and aggression.”

Ireland: Opposition calls for school ban on hijab

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Muslim girls should not be allowed to wear a headscarf in public schools, the two main opposition parties said last night.

Labour’s Ruairi Quinn said immigrants who come to Ireland need to conform to the culture of this country. “If people want to come into a western society that is Christian and secular, they need to conform to the rules and regulations of that country,” the Labour spokesman on education and science told the Irish Independent.

His comments come amid mounting controversy over guidelines on the wearing of the hijab, commonly worn by Muslim girl in state schools.

His stance on the issue was backed by his Fine Gael counterpart Brian Hayes, who says it makes “absolute sense” that there is one uniform for everyone.

Mr Quinn said immigrants should live by Irish laws and conform to Irish norms. “Nobody is formally asking them to come here. In the interests of integration and assimilation, they should embrace our culture,” he said. He added: “Irish girls don’t wear headscarves. A manifestation of religious beliefs in such a way is unacceptable and draws attention to those involved. I believe in a public school situation they should not wear a headscarf.”

Mr Hayes said Ireland should not be going down the route of multiculturalism.

Last night, a spokesperson for Integration Minister Conor Lenihan said he had no problem with students wearing the hijab. “For those that wear the hijab, it’s an issue of modesty. It’s not so long since Irish women wore headscarves to church, so we have to respect that,” the spokesperson said.

Irish Independent, 2 June 2008

Muslim TV crew stopped under terror law

Posted on by Bob Pitt

A Muslim TV producer has accused the police of constantly targeting her crew and stopping them from filming in the streets of London. The crew from an international Muslim network, which included three hijab wearing members, were filming in Notting Hill, west London, in March when they said they were stopped and quizzed. Producer Anousheh Demartino, who was stopped on three previous occasions, told The Muslim News:

“They asked us for our ID and why we were filming. After we told them we were allowed to continue. 20 minutes later we were stopped again. This time we were asked for our residential address; they only asked me, the two other hijab wearing women and not [our] young cameraman. I protested at first and asked why they needed my home address when it was a professional not a personal matter, but he insisted and, not wanting to prolong the incident, I gave him the details.” Anousheh says she was given no legal reasons as to why they were stopped filming; however, she did say the officer made a reference to terrorist activity.

Speaking of her “frustrating” experience as a Muslim journalist she said, “I was stopped before with another crew and given report slips once on High Street Kensington in February and once on Victoria Road. We have to carry those slips with us all the time. I don’t know why we constantly get stopped, is it because we are not a large mainstream media [outlet], or is it because I wear the hijab?”

The incident came a month before a Muslim BBC journalist was held to the ground by police officers after his radio equipment was mistaken for an explosive device.

Muslim News, 30 May 2008

Islamophobia forces Danish Muslims to consider emigration

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Pia Kjærsgaard DFPia Kjaersgaard’s Danish People’s Party has a genius for attracting attention. Over the past month its campaign to ban public employees from wearing Islamic headscarves has dominated the headlines and also triggered squabbles within most of the country’s other political parties.

The campaign began with a poster of a burka-clad woman wielding a judge’s gavel. The implicit message was that Danes risk having their courts invaded by Muslim hordes and sharia law. Birthe Ronn Hornbech, the immigration minister, denounced theDPP as “fanatically anti-Muslim” and said the judiciary was capable of policing its own impartiality and dress code. Stig Glent-Madsen, a high-court judge, confirmed that the judiciary had always managed this itself.

Yet the government, which relies on the DPP‘s support to stay in power, has decided that a new law is needed to ban the wearing of all religious symbols by judges – from Christian crosses to Jewish skullcaps and even Sikh turbans. The hapless Ms Ronn Hornbech will have to frame the law. And the DPP is now calling for even broader bans. Muslim headscarves, says Ms Kjaersgaard, are a “symbol of political Islam and the discrimination against women”. She wants them “out of schools, off the streets and outside the doors of parliament”.

Many Danes share Ms Kjaersgaard’s sentiments. A poll by Megafon for TV2 found 48% in favour of a ban on public employees wearing “religious garb”, and only 39% against.

One response has come from Danish-born Muslims. A poll by Politiken, a daily, of 315 young Muslim students, found that two-thirds of them were considering emigrating after graduation. Most gave as their reason “the tone of the Danish debate about Muslims”.

Economist, 29 May 2008

School ban sparks Belgian hijab campaign

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Belgian hijab campaignBRUSSELS — The decision of a Brussels school to deny Muslim girls the right to wear hijab has motivated them to champion a protest campaign, the latest episode of the hijab debate in the European country.

“The hijab ban has no ground and the administration offered no explanation and did not consult with teachers or parents,” reads a petition circulated by Muslim students in the Institut des Ursulines in the Brussels borough of Molenbeek.

The Catholic school, where Muslims comprise some 85 percent of the students, has decided to ban hijab starting the next academic year. The controversial decision promoted Muslim students to launch a protest campaign, including a rally outside the school, which is located in an area with a large Muslim population.

“The decision, a violation of women rights, is unacceptable,” says the petition. “It has caused us much distraction during our exam period and will threaten the educational future of tens of students next year. It was never reported before that the hijab has caused any disruption of the educational process.”

Many students have already announced they will leave the school if forced to take off their hijab.

Islam Online, 28 May 2008

Muslim women say company’s dress code violates faith

Posted on by Bob Pitt

A group of Muslim workers allege they were fired by a New Brighton tortilla factory for refusing to wear uniforms that they say were immodest by Islamic standards. Six Somali women claim they were ordered by a manager to wear pants and shirts to work instead of their traditional Islamic clothing of loose-fitting skirts and scarves, according to the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), a civil liberties group that is representing the women. The women have filed a religious discrimination complaint with the federal Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.

Minneapolis Star Tribune, 27 May 2008

See also CAIR press release, 27 May 2008

‘No place for the hijab in civic life’ says Irish journalist

Posted on by Bob Pitt

“If Muslim men are so keen on seeing their headscarf introduced into Irish society, they should wear it as well as their women. Let them cover up, too. Otherwise there must be no place for the hijab in civic life here. Not in banks, hospitals or libraries, not in the guards or civil service and most definitely not in schools.

“You hear a constant stream of hooey about why we can’t ban the headscarf. But this is not about Islamophobia. It’s not about prejudice on race or religion grounds. It’s not about equating the Muslim scarf with terrorism. It’s not about denial of civil rights. Here’s what banning the headscarf is about: the State demonstrating our belief in gender equality. It’s about removing a symbol of repression and submission.

“… it is not discriminatory to ban the hijab in a country that is culturally Christian…. Of course, some nuns wear veils but that’s of their own volition as adult women – not a custom they are railroaded into as children….

“I don’t regard the hijab as a harmless expression of religious and cultural diversity. A veiled woman carries regressive connotations. If we accept it in schools, we open the door to other practices in the Muslim world even more repressive to women, among them arranged marriages and female circumcision.”

Martina Devlin in the Irish Independent, 22 May 2008

Update:  See Yusuf Smith’s comments at Indigo Jo Blogs, 23 May 2008