Sacred Celtic Order of Balance Church

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Muslim Student Suspended For Head Covering

2004-MAY-20

Oklahoma student can wear hijab: Nashala Heam, an 11-year old student of the Muskogee Public School District in Oklahoma, OK, was suspended twice by the school for wearing a hijab -- a head scarf worn by devout Muslim women and girls. The scarf violated a school dress code that banned hats and other head coverings. The school board maintained that the other students were "frightened" by her scarf. The Justice Department filed a lawsuit in 2004-MAR on her behalf. The school district has also agreed to modify the dress code to allow for religious exceptions, and to educate teachers and other staff about the new code. R. Alexander Acosta, assistant attorney general for civil rights of the Justice Department said: "This settlement reaffirms the principle that public schools cannot require students to check their faith at the schoolhouse door...It is un-American to fear and to hate.