American Arab Anti Discrimination Committee

ADC recently signed onto an amici curiae (friend of the court brief) in support of the Petition of Writ of Certiorari to the Supreme Court of the United States regarding a religious discrimination case. The American-Arab Institute (AAI), The American Muslim Council (AMC), and the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) joined in the brief as well. The Petition for Writ of Certiorari, which asks the Supreme Court to hear the case, along with the brief of Amici Curiae, was filed on Friday July 20, 2001.

The case involves an Arab-American woman named Zeinab Ali who sued her former employer, Alamo Rent-A-Car, for employment discrimination under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 for refusing to allow her to wear her head scarf (hijab) at work. Muslim women wear the “hijab” for religious reasons (religious requirement observance). In August 1996, Alamo hired Zeinab as a management trainee and in December 1999, her new supervisor told her that she should stop wearing the head scarf because it “made her look different from the other company employees.” The supervisor stated that if she persisted to wear the hijab she would be transferred to a position in which she would not be in frequent contact with customers.

Fearful of being dismissed, she then stopped wearing the headscarf and replaced it with “a smaller head covering.” She was nonetheless transferred to a position involving no customer contact. She continued to wear the smaller headscarf until leaving Alamo due to a reduction in their work force. Ms. Ali then sued, contending that her supervisor’s directive requiring her to dispense with a head scarf which she felt mandated to wear by her religion violated Title VII against discrimination based on religion. She alleged that these actions were “motivated by anti-Muslim sentiment or by callous indifference to her sensibilities as a Muslim woman.” Ms. Ali’s complaint sought “a declaration under 28 U.S.C. section 2201, that by their actions, defendants violated her right to employment free from religious discrimination.”

The district court dismissed Ms. Ali’s complaint for failure to allege an “actual or threatened adverse employment action.” Ms. Ali then filed a motion to amend her complaint claiming that Title VII religious discrimination claims do not require a showing of adverse employment action. The court denied the motion and Ms. Ali appealed. The US Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit affirmed. Ms. Ali has now filed for Writ of Certiorari for the Supreme Court to review the judgement and opinion of the Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit.

In its statement of interest, ADC explained that its interest in this case stems from its concern that large numbers of its Arab-American members regularly experience discrimination in the workplace. Particularly, the number of discrimination complaints received from Muslim women who wear a head covering has increased significantly in recent years. Muslim women who wear the hijab in the workplace are frequently harassed by co-workers and are often asked by employers and supervisors to remove it or risk termination or transfer.

In their brief, the groups stated that the decision made by the lower courts will foster religious discrimination in the workplace and is directly contrary to the religious discrimination provisions of Title VII and the Supreme Court’s construction of these provisions. The brief also states that Title VII protects against religious discrimination on the basis of an accommodation obligation.

	23 July, 2001
	ADC Signs onto Brief of Amici Curiae to the Supreme Court


	ADC recently signed onto an amici curiae (friend of the court brief) in support of the Petition of Writ of Certiorari to the Supreme Court of the United States regarding a religious discrimination case. The American-Arab Institute (AAI), The American Muslim Council (AMC), and the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) joined in the brief as well. The Petition for Writ of Certiorari, which asks the Supreme Court to hear the case, along with the brief of Amici Curiae, was filed on Friday July 20, 2001. The case involves an Arab-American woman named Zeinab Ali who sued her former employer, Alamo Rent-A-Car, for employment discrimination under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 for refusing to allow her to wear her head scarf (hijab) at work. Muslim women wear the “hijab” for religious reasons (religious requirement observance). In August 1996, Alamo hired Zeinab as a management trainee and in December 1999, her new supervisor told her that she should stop wearing the head scarf because it “made her look different from the other company employees.” The supervisor stated that if she persisted to wear the hijab she would be transferred to a position in which she would not be in frequent contact with customers. Fearful of being dismissed, she then stopped wearing the headscarf and replaced it with “a smaller head covering.” She was nonetheless transferred to a position involving no customer contact. She continued to wear the smaller headscarf until leaving Alamo due to a reduction in their work force. Ms. Ali then sued, contending that her supervisor’s directive requiring her to dispense with a head scarf which she felt mandated to wear by her religion violated Title VII against discrimination based on religion. She alleged that these actions were “motivated by anti-Muslim sentiment or by callous indifference to her sensibilities as a Muslim woman.” Ms. Ali’s complaint sought “a declaration under 28 U.S.C. section 2201, that by their actions, defendants violated her right to employment free from religious discrimination.” The district court dismissed Ms. Ali’s complaint for failure to allege an “actual or threatened adverse employment action.” Ms. Ali then filed a motion to amend her complaint claiming that Title VII religious discrimination claims do not require a showing of adverse employment action. The court denied the motion and Ms. Ali appealed. The US Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit affirmed. Ms. Ali has now filed for Writ of Certiorari for the Supreme Court to review the judgement and opinion of the Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit. In its statement of interest, ADC explained that its interest in this case stems from its concern that large numbers of its Arab-American members regularly experience discrimination in the workplace. Particularly, the number of discrimination complaints received from Muslim women who wear a head covering has increased significantly in recent years. Muslim women who wear the hijab in the workplace are frequently harassed by co-workers and are often asked by employers and supervisors to remove it or risk termination or transfer. In their brief, the groups stated that the decision made by the lower courts will foster religious discrimination in the workplace and is directly contrary to the religious discrimination provisions of Title VII and the Supreme Court’s construction of these provisions. The brief also states that Title VII protects against religious discrimination on the basis of an accommodation obligation.