USA: Court upholds firing over Muslim headscarf

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"We do not minimize the religious significance of the khimar for the women who wear them. We recognize a compelling sense of religious obligation in the decision to wear a khimar."

Times of Ahmad | News Watch | US Desk
Source/Credit: The Courier-Post / USA Today
By Jim Walsh,  | January 18, 2017

CAMDEN, N.J. — An appeals court Wednesday upheld the firing of a Camden County corrections officer who said her Muslim beliefs required her to wear a head covering on duty.

Linda Tisby, a 13-year employee at the county jail, contended her dismissal in May 2015 violated her rights under the state's Law Against Discrimination. Tisby, who was fired after adopting the Sunni Muslim faith, said county officials had failed to accommodate her "sincere religious beliefs."

But a three-judge panel supported two Superior Court rulings against Tisby, saying the county had shown Tisby's head covering — known as a khimar or hijab — would impose an undue hardship on the jail. It said that circumstance created an exception to the state law, allowing Tisby's termination.

"We do not minimize the religious significance of the khimar for the women who wear them," the ruling said. "We recognize a compelling sense of religious obligation in the decision to wear a khimar."

The panel agreed with a trial judge who found the jail's ban on khimars was justified "because of overriding safety concerns, the potential for concealment of contraband and the importance of uniform neutrality."

County officials were pleased with the ruling, said spokesman Dan Keashen.

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