Fatima Mossolem Research Paper

Fatima Mossolem

Islamaphobia is defined as the dislike of or prejudice against Islam or Muslims, especially as a political force. the definition of discrimination is the unjust or prejudicial treatment of different categories of people or things, especially on the grounds of race, age, or religion. Today in the united states more than 3,386 religious discrimination cases have been filed in the past year, most of them concerning the growing animosity towards Muslim Americans (Greenhouse). The root of this problem, some would say, is the backlash muslims faced after the 9/11 bombings, over 3,000 people were killed in this bombing. Most of these "issues" come from muslim women being forced to remove their head coverings or muslims being openly

Mervat is 53 years old and was arrested by the NYPD. An unidentified officer removed her scarf before she was put in the ambulance to receive medical treatment form Wyckoff Hospital, while there a nurse gave her a pillow case in order to cover her hair. The scarf was later returned to her while she was being transferred to the police station for booking but she was again made to remove it in order to take her mug shot. Mervat informed the officers of her religious obligation to wear the scarf in front of men, they responded, "This is America, we don’t care" (Marzulli). This is not the true extent of the discrimination Mervat faced, at the hospital where she was being treated she went to use the restroom when a nurse barged in catching her with her pants down. The nurse was instructed to enter the bathroom by a police officer who said that the would “seize her”. after being taken to the precinct he was forced to cut the collar of her shirt for her mug shot. Mervat also pleaded with the officers to have her picture taken with a female in a closed room but her requests were ignored (DIVITO). All charges against her were ultimately dropped but Mervat wants a comprehensive plan for officers to follow when encountered with another muslim

As there is a growing islamophobia movement there are many organizations and people willing to fight for muslim women to be allowed to wear their hijabs in situations such as arrests and mug shot photos. Part of Malak Kazan’s lawsuit is to have the Dearborn police department’s policy changed permanently in order to accommodate women of the Islamic faith (Lawsuit). This is not the only movement for this specific topic though The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) is working very closely with prisons in America to allow Hijabi women to be allowed to wear the hijab in jail. There are already different stations in Detroit that allow women to wear the scarf during detainment (May). CAIR is the largest organization fighting for muslim woman to be given the right to wear scarfs in jail. the Cair organization operates through donations from members as well as fundraising events. They are involved in many political movements but are currently very involved in the Syrian refugee crisis. CAIR is currently petitioning the U.S. Department of Justice to allow muslim women the right to wear scarfs in jail (Zoukis). MCSO jail was one of the first to implement a policy regarding the wearing of religious head coverings by