![[Skip to Page Content]](graphics/skip_sliver.jpg){kind=small}
|
       |
 
 |
Muslim-Americans in Mainstream America
“NEXT I'LL HAVE INDIANS COMING IN WANTING TO WEAR FEATHERS” Islam, while simple in its conception (that there is only One God, and Muhammad is the last of His many prophets), can seem tricky to implement in America. It demands certain etiquettes, like modest codes of dress, avoidance of social gatherings involving alcohol, and specified acts of worship from its followers. These disciplines provide spiritual satisfaction and inner peace to Muslims, but are not familiar to many of their acquaintances of other faiths. This misunderstanding can lead to friction. "Fatima" was overjoyed when the manager told her she had gotten the desk clerk position. "Come in tomorrow morning," he said. "I'll be there!" she replied. "Come in at nine a.m., and without the headpart," he added. Her joy turned to dismay. "I can't! I can't!" Just as quickly as she had been hired, she was fired. The Virginia Quality Inn hotel manager certainly couldn't have foreseen the nationwide support that the Muslim lady received after he fired her for refusing to come to work without her religiously-mandated headscarf. And the reason he gave only underscored his lack of knowledge: "If I let her come in with her head covered, next thing you know I'll have Indians coming in here wanting to wear feathers!" Clearly he not only didn’t know about Islam, he also didn't realize that "Fatima's" right to wear a scarf over her hair at work is guaranteed by the First Amendment to the Constitution. Courts have repeatedly upheld the right to wear religiously-mandated clothing, such as a Muslim hijab, or headscarf, on the job. Only after the Quality Inn manager saw a nicely arranged news conference in front of his hotel and after he received a call from Quality Inn's national headquarters did he begin to feel more flexible. In the end, "Fatima" received an apology, financial compensation, and the invitation to begin her clerk's job, scarf and all. "Fatima's" hijab case became the precedent that produced many fruitful efforts across the country to preserve the Muslim woman's right to work and to express her religious identity. The hijab is now well-respected in major cities, where it is a familiar sight on Muslim clerks, cashiers, and physicians. This right also extends to the beard worn by many committed Muslim men and the need to attend weekly Jumuah prayer services (Friday prayer). The courts have protected one's right to practice sincerely-held religious beliefs. Even when some workers do not practice their religion, the employer is required to respect the rights of those who do. CAN'T YOU PRAY LATER? "Can't you just pray when you go home? Can't you do your prayers on the weekend?" asked the puzzled assembly line supervisor in Suwanee, GA. Why did the Muslim employees have to pray during their shift? And why did these struggling blue-collar workers care enough about saying their prayers at certain times to resign from their jobs, en masse, when the company refused to let them use ten minutes of their hurried lunch breaks to pray? It was all too much for him to understand. The truth was that these employees, all recent immigrants, needed their jobs and had been exemplary workers. But as Muslims, they were committed to the five daily prayers that are a minimum requirement for all believers. If they worked the day shift, this meant that they needed ten or 15 minutes during the afternoon to wash themselves, stand facing Mekka, and focus exclusively on God while they recited His praises. Any worker who postponed his prayer until he punched out would betray the fundamentals of his faith: "Prayers are prescribed for believers at assigned times" (Qur'an 4:103). Yet the workers were not asking for special privileges. They were willing to deduct the time needed for prayers from their lunch breaks, and they covered for each other on the assembly line. The difficulty was that the managers did not see any need to accommodate their Muslim workers' worship whatsoever. Prayer is private, they reasoned, not something to be carried on in the workplace! What the managers at Solectron, the world’s largest electronics manufacturing services company, failed to comprehend is that skipping or delaying the prayers is not an option for a practicing Muslim. According to an authentic saying of the Prophet Muhammad, the difference between a Muslim and a non-Muslim is precisely the performance of the daily prayers. To leave one's prayers is to leave one's faith. CAIR was able to negotiate with Solectron on behalf of the employees and reach a settlement which benefited both the company and the workers. The employees were allowed to return to work and were compensated for days missed. Prayers could be said during break times, and management would receive sensitivity training about Islam. The return for the company, which has a 10% Muslim workforce worldwide, was higher productivity, improved worker morale and loyalty — and an enhanced corporate image.
Next Page
|
 |
Special Reports:
|
Printer Friendly Version of this Article