Wednesday, March 11, 2009

US:Muslim Woman Wearing Head Scarf Asked to Leave Bank Line Again



This is a follow up story about a Muslim woman who is suing a bank for refusing to serve her unless she took off her head scarf. The bank said that this was for security issues. The difference between this story and the first is that this is the second time that this same woman went into the same bank looking to break the rules. This was obviously a setup.

Hat tip to Suzanne.

Muslim Woman Asked to Leave Line at Credit Union Because of Head Scarf

By Matt Zapotosky
Washington Post Staff Writer
Tuesday, March 10, 2009
A Muslim woman was asked to leave her place in line at a credit union in Southern Maryland and be served in a back room because the head scarf she wore for religious reasons violated the institution's "no hats, hoods or sunglasses" policy, the woman said yesterday.

The incident at the Navy Federal Credit Union on Saturday was the second in a month for Kenza Shelley, and Muslim advocates fear it could become a problem nationwide as many financial institutions, intent on curbing robberies and identity theft, ban hats and similar items without appropriate accommodations for religious attire.

"This may be the tip of the iceberg," said Ibrahim Hooper, a spokesman for the Washington-based Council on American-Islamic Relations. "There's got to be a way to work it out so that this security concern does not lead to violations of constitutional rights."

Shelley, 54, who runs a day care out of her home in Lexington Park, said she has used the credit union in the St. Mary's County community of California for more than 10 years. Until February, no employees had complained about her head scarf, which covers her hair but not her face. But a few weeks ago, she said, she was standing in line to deposit a check when an employee asked her to come to the back room, referring to a new policy that prohibited hats, hoods and sunglasses. She complied but asked whether she would have to go through the same process each time she made a transaction.

On Saturday, Shelley said, employees again asked her to come to the back room if she would not remove her head scarf. "No," she recalled telling them, "I want to be served like everybody else."

She left the credit union and called the Council on American-Islamic Relations, which lobbies and advocates for the Muslim community. "There was so many people there, and I was embarrassed," she said.

Tom Lyons, senior vice president for security at Navy Federal, said he was not aware of Shelley's case and could not discuss it specifically. But he defended the credit union's policy, implemented in December, saying it was designed to prevent armed robbery and identity theft. He said it would not be unreasonable for bank employees to ask customers who refused to take off their hats to move to a separate room so they could be identified.

"We want to be able to clearly identify who you are and make sure the transaction is safe," Lyons said. "This is a policy that applies to everybody in the branch. She wasn't singled out. . . . We tried to accommodate her and help her with her transaction and move on."

Lyons said that banks saw a significant increase in robberies last year, especially in the Washington area, and that many banks have instituted similar policies. Navy Federal is among the last to do so, he said. "This is not a new process. It's all over the country."

Fred Solomon, a spokesman for PNC Bank, said all branches have banned hats and other head apparel for more than a year, although the company put signs in their buildings stating as much only in the past six months. He said the reason for the ban is security. He said his tellers receive "special training on what is and isn't religious headgear" and are told not to ask those wearing religious headgear to take it off.

News reports provided by the Council on American-Islamic Relations indicate that two Muslim women in the state of California were refused service when they would not remove their scarves.


Link to Article

18 comments:

Anonymous said...

someone should make sure she has all the permits, insurance, training to run a day care from her home - also check her taxes to make sure they comply appropriately and she is not bilking the govt out of taxpayer money for her business

if CAIR wants to fight the litigation jihad, that is a two way street that can be fought

Anonymous said...

That is good thinking. Fight fire with fire.

milford421 said...

"We want to be able to clearly identify who you are and make sure the transaction is safe," Lyons said. "This is a policy that applies to everybody in the branch. She wasn't singled out. . . . We tried to accommodate her and help her with her transaction and move on."

That's reasonable. Rules are rules...for ALL. She had the opportunity to be served respectfully. Another CAIR ploy to allow muslims in this country to ignore the rules that all other Americans obey. This woman has no respect.

Can anyone join the NFCU or do they need to be a member of the Navy?

Tonto said...

These other guys are right. Fight fire with fire and check out her bone-fides six ways from Saturday....It's uncomfortable, but if it's done every time the CAIR pukes get involved, they have to waste time producing the correct papers. Go after the CAIR lawyers too....ain't no lawyer with clean skirts alive on this planet.

Anonymous said...

I feel the "security issue" is too often an excuse for discrimination.

-Samir

Anonymous said...

LOL!! A Muslim talking about discrimination. Of course he has to play the victim card and completely ignore the fact that these rules apply to everyone. Whine, whine, whine. Always the victims, boo freaking hoo.

The Munz said...

Samir
If the security issue is applied evenly then there is no problem at all with it.
It is there to protect everyone in that bank at the time and the institution from would be attackers.

If you are serious about this then think how it would be if someone came in wearing something that partially covered their appearance so they could not be detected and then killed this woman during a hold up.

Wouldn't you rather she be safe while in this institution? don't they have an obligation to protect themselves, employees and customers while doing business?

Again as long as it is applied to EVERYONE i see no problem with it and those who complain about it raise my suspicion.

denialator said...

She wants to be served like everyone else, but refuses to be governed by the same rules as everyone else. Isn't this reverse discrimination?

The first mistake made was the offer to serve this customer in a different room and show preferential treatment. If I were a customer of this credit union, I would complain that this customer received better treatment than the rest of those who were expected to obey the rules.

Anonymous said...

Hey Samir,


Get the CRAP out of my nation and go back to your outhouse of a nation in the middle-east,
You dont like OUR rules than go to hell and leave us now you welfare abusing bum.
Your time is coming to an end in the western world.
We dont need your 7th century mentality as we prefer the 21st century.
You better believe we discriminate against mass murderers as muslims....get used to it.
You know, how you treat non-muslims in your countries.
How does it feel girlfriend?

Hungarian Crusader

Anonymous said...

Samir said "I feel the "security issue" is too often an excuse for discrimination"

Actually I think that we are not doing enough discriminating when it comes to security issues - and we should. For instance, why the heck should we needlessly subject nuns and old women to security checks in airports, in the name of fairness and randomness? Why can't we do a profile based on religion and appearance to quickly isolate islamic thugs?
Enough of this fairness nonsense which only seems to work in favor of muslims!

Chetha

Anonymous said...

I'm an American Muslim & I can't believe in this day & age that some ppl are still stupid enough to say that she should be treated differently or looked into with a magnifying glass. Muslim doesn't equal terrorist. There is a reason she is wearing the headscarf, instead of letting your ignorance & fear speak you should educate yourself about those reasons before you open your mouths. This is suppose to be a free country where we are allowed to practice whatever religion we chose, so if she lives in this country she has that right the same as everybody else. Just because some ppl chose to be stupid biggots we can't help that. In Islam whenever we step outside of our homes we are required to cover ourselves & nobody is allowed to ask us to uncover. Only our husbands & our family members are allowed to see what lies beneath.

Anonymous said...

Modesty is not a virtue in America, this woman was shamed by a company that she does business with - by a company who knew she wore hajib when she opened her account with them. This is the most ignorant form racial profiling. Islam is not the enemy, ignorance is.

Anonymous said...

we're getting tired of these filthy, diaperheaded subhuman muslim rodents in the west.

time for a purge.

Anonymous said...

As also an American Muslim, Anonymous does have one good point and that is many people are still stupid but that of course applies to all Religions, ethnic groups, etc… including Muslims. Last week I also walked into a Bank and as asked to remove my sun glasses which I did without question since it only made sense security wise. The fact of the matter is that not all Muslims are terrorists but 99.9% of all terrorists acts are performed by Muslims. The fact of the matter is that the Hajib, Jilbab, the Burqa, etc… are ALL forms of Islamic clothing used historically as a Religious symbol and as a means to restrict women’s moment. It is clear to this Muslim that this women has decided her Religious beliefs take precedence over everyone’s else since her Religion is the only one in the world choosing to display ignorance and defiance to anything secular in our society. No Anonymous, while our society isn’t as near free as it once was before Islam started demanding special privileges such as special prayer rooms, special bathrooms, extra prayer breaks paid in full, etc… you get the point. Every Religion, including Islam, is protected under our laws and allowed to practice but you aren’t allowed to force your dress codes on everyone else. Also, NO where in the Quran does it state that women are required to cover themselves, this ‘requirement’ was only started in the late 18th century by the Wahabbi’s which as everyone knows, doesn’t believe any Religion but Islam is valid and still treats women as cattle. No my friend, nobody in this forum is stupid except for a few who choose to mock other people with foul language. Clearly, you believe a women’s place is in the house but forcing your Religious ideology on a society, like it or not, that is based upon Judeo Christian values, seems as bigoted and ignorant of our values as you claim we are ignorant of your values. Islam is not the enemy but many Muslim’s in the millions do see American and anything else other than Islam as the enemy which has to be addressed and ignoring this seems to this Muslim the ultimate in ignorance!

PS-While living in the most populous Muslim country for many years, my language teacher told me that since God created Islam, Islam was the only true Religion. Hence, according to him, since Jesus was only a prophet, and Muhammad actually talked to God through Gabriel, Islam was the only true Religion; ignorance or belief? You tell me.

Anonymous said...

I can't belief all this hate. Can't we all get along!!!
Please respect and understand peoples religious beliefs. I grew up in NY and always walked across "Mormons" where women wore bonnets on their head with long sleeve dresses and men with long beard and hats. It Didn't strike me one bit. Only to know that is their ways of style and belief to cover up. PLEASE STOP! this hate, it's not getting no where but hell. If you can't understand somebodys belief, then go and open up their book and read. Understanding and accepting is better than ignorance. There are crimes everyday in the news and mostly are from non muslims. Muslim crimes makeup only 1% of Muslims in the country. Saudia Arabia has the least crime in the world. This women is not a criminal, she's simply is a believer of GOD meaning she has no heart to hurt anyone. Ignorance is such an ugly thing. I know none of you ignorant people above liked to be treated by ignorance by your neighbors. Wouldn't it be better to get along and get to know each other...Do that and see for yourself. I know that I have lived side by side with Muslims. They are hard working people and have strong belief for God. Why would someone who obeys god or a religious value hurt anyone. There is good and bad in every race.
God is loving and love those who follow his ways. PEACE!

Anonymous said...

Bandanas, sunglasses, and hats are cool things to wear that don't show respect. A hijab or religious head scarf, such as Muslim women wear and Catholic Nuns are for the purpose of a religious belief and is a sign of a believer in GOD. Which is not the same as Bandanas, sunglasses, and hats. So for those ignorant people stop denying that you don't know the symbols of a head scarf on a Catholic Nun or Muslims and other beliefs.

Anonymous said...

Muslim women feminists say that it is their CHOICE to wear a hijab - that means it is not required.

Janice said...

I fully agree with anything you've printed here.