Thread: Mickey Mouse Ears VS Hijab

Muslim employee: Disney banned her head scarf
Gillian Flaccus, Associated Press Writer – 8 mins ago

ANAHEIM, Calif. – A Muslim woman who works as a hostess at a Disneyland restaurant alleged Wednesday the theme park would not allow her to appear in front of customers while wearing her head scarf.

Imane Boudlal, 26, appeared outside the resort's Grand Californian Hotel after filing a complaint with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.

She said when she wore the hijab to work Sunday, her supervisors told her to remove it, work where customers couldn't see her, or go home.

Boudlal, who wore the scarf in observance of Ramadan, chose to go home but reported to work for the next two days and was told the same thing.

"Miss Boudlal has effectively understood that they're not interested in accommodating her request either in timing or good faith," said Ameena Qazi, an attorney from the Council on American-Islamic Relations who is consulting with Boudlal.

Disneyland spokeswoman Suzi Brown said Disney has a policy not to discriminate. The resort offered Boudlal a chance to work with the head covering away from customers while Disneyland tries to find a compromise that would allow Boudlal to cover her head in a way that fits with her hostess uniform, Brown said.

Boudlal has worked at the Storyteller restaurant at the hotel for 2 1/2 years but only realized she could wear her hijab to work after studying for her U.S. citizenship exam in June, Qazi said.

She asked her supervisors if she could wear the scarf and was told they would consult with the corporate office, Qazi said. Boudlal didn't hear anything for two months and was then told she could wear a head scarf, but it had to be designed by Disneyland's costume department to comply with the Disney look, Qazi said.

She was fitted for a Disney-supplied head scarf but was not given a date when the garment would be finished and was told she couldn't wear her own hijab in the interim.

Boudlal wore her own hijab to work for the first time Sunday.

"After these two months and this complicated process, she decided to come forward," Qazi said. "She really wanted to be able to wear it on Ramadan."

Boudlal has the support of her union, which has been in a bitter fight for months with Disneyland over an expired contract for hotel workers. Brown accused the union of distorting the facts in Boudlal's case to distract from the key issues in the contract fight.

Leigh Shelton, a spokeswoman for the union, said Boudlal's coming forward now had nothing to do with the negotiations.

"There's absolutely no correlation," said Shelton, who's with Unite Here Local 11

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/us_disney...NsaW1lbXBsb3k-

COMMENTS:

Human rights have nothing to do with violating your job's dress code when your employer - WHO PAYS YOU GOOD OLE AMERICAN MONEY - tried to accommodate you, and you willfully chose to defy him.

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Oh for crying out loud, there's a dress code!!! Shoot, the poor girl at McDonald's drive thru yesterday afternoon had to put her hand up in front of her face and hold it there the whole time because the sun was shining so hard in her face she couldn't see. I suggested she get a baseball cap to pull the visor down for protection and she said that she couldn't nor could she wear sunglasses because that wasn't the official McD's uniform. She was half blind from the strong sun. Working in many corporate locations you have to abide by the dress code, it is a company policy. It's ridiculous to make a stink about it for the love of Pete.

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Hmm, of course, an attorney for CAIR. The Council to Islamize America.

It's a work place. You've got a uniform. Get over it or get out. Maybe if people start leaving the restaurant when they see her, she'll understand this is the U.S. and she's an employee. We don't receive special dress code exemptions. Why should she?

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She worked there for 2 years without wearing the hijab - why is it suddenly an issue now ??