The ADC-Michigan Files Lawsuit against the City of Dearborn for the forcible removal of the headscarf

Today, the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC) Michigan Regional Office filed a lawsuit against the City of Dearborn, City of Dearborn Police Department, City of Dearborn Chief of Police Ronald Haddad, and other City of Dearborn Police Officers for forcing a Muslim woman to remove her Islamic headscarf, “hijab.” This afternoon, the ADC-Michigan held a press conference in front of Dearborn Police Department to announce the lawsuit alongside the NAACP Western Wayne President, Walter Starghill, and other organizations.  

The lawsuit alleges that the city of Dearborn Police Officers took the victim into custody due to an unpaid parking violation—of which she was unaware—and then forced her to remove her hijab in the presence of several male officers.

Several other women contacted the ADC-Michigan after being forced to remove their hijab by City of Dearborn Police Officers in total disregard for the deeply held religious beliefs of the women.

ADC-Michigan Director, Attorney Fatina Abdrabboh, expressed the significance of this issue for Muslim-American women , “We must not live in a society where discrimination along religious lines is tolerated, especially when this violation is committed by the very entity charged with protecting them – the Dearborn Police Department. The Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act (RLUIPA) protects people institutionalized and in custody and was designed by Congress to ensure the freedom to practice sincerely held religious beliefs. The conduct of the City of Dearborn in relation to Muslim women and their religious practices must not go unchecked any longer.”

ADC-Michigan’s attorneys, Fatina Abdrabboh and Reem Subei will serve as co-counsel on the case along with Attorneys Shereef Akeel and Wil Thomas from Akeel and Valentine Law Firm.