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Muslim Woman's Religious Rights Violated by Local Sheriff

Thursday, December 6, 2007 permalink

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The ACLU is representing a Muslim woman forced to bare her head by San Bernardino County Sheriff's deputies in violation of her religious beliefs.

Some Muslim women choose to wear the hijab as a reflection of their faith. The U.S. Constitution protects individual religious expression, whether in schools, jails or other government buildings.

Jameelah Medina was arrested for having an invalid commuter-rail pass and briefly held. She was not prosecuted.

Despite her repeated requests to keep her head covered, she was forced to remove her hijab.

"Even after the officer had searched me and found nothing, she would not give me back my scarf," said Ms. Medina, who was born in the United States. "I felt humiliated and exposed."

The lawsuit was filed by the ACLU of Southern California, the national ACLU Women’s Rights Project and the national ACLU Program on Freedom of Religion and Belief.

Photo: Jameelah Medina spoke to the media about her experience

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