Bullied for Not Believing in God • Where Religious Leaders Stand On A Military Strike On Syria • Quebec reveals religious symbols to be banned from public sector • Judge Says Abercrombie Discriminated When It Fired Hijab-Wearing Employee • Woman In Sudan Refuses To Wear Hijab, Faces Flogging
Last week's top news, from our perspective:
Bullied for Not Believing in God
Despite secularism and atheism being on the rise, some areligious students feel discriminated against—at times violently. Now teachers across the U.S. are creating Secular Safe Zones to "curtail anti-atheist bullying, discrimination, and social isolation." (Photo by Thomas Ricker, via Flickr Creative Commons)
Where Religious Leaders Stand On A Military Strike On Syria
In recent weeks, religious leaders have added their voices to the Syrian debate. Some American religious leaders have been clear in their condemnation of the proposed use of force, others have come out in support of a military intervention and some have been hesitant to weigh in on how best to respond to Bashar Assad's alleged use of chemical weapons.
Huffington Post has collected a list of religious groups that have made statements on the proposed Syrian strikes.
Quebec reveals religious symbols to be banned from public sector
The Parti Québécois government is leading Quebec into a wrenching debate over faith and the future place of minorities in the province by unveiling a charter of values that would ban Muslim headscarves, Sikh turbans, Jewish kippas and other “overt” religious symbols from the public service.
Judge Says Abercrombie Discriminated When It Fired Hijab-Wearing Employee
Abercrombie & Fitch Co. (ANF) violated equal-employment laws when it fired a Muslim employee for wearing a religious head scarf, a federal judge in California found. Umme-Hani Khan, who was 19-years-old at the time, was fired from the teen-retailer's Hollister store in San Mateo, Calif. in Feb. 2010 after refusing to take off her hijab, according to the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.
Ms. Khan, who worked primarily in the company's stockroom from Oct. 2009, complied with her employer's request to wear head scarves in Hollister colors. But she was later told that the hijab violated the company's "Look Policy"–or dress code.
Woman In Sudan Refuses To Wear Hijab, Faces Flogging
mira Osman Hamed, a Sudanese woman, will be tried on Sept. 19 for refusing to cover her hair with a hijab, a headscarf worn by Muslim women. If convicted, the 35-year-old could be punished by flogging, according to the Agence France-Presse.
After being detained by police for refusing to wear a hijab on Aug. 27, she says she is willing to face the flogging in order to protest the law that requires her to cover her hair.