You have the Justice Dept. and and case on your side.
Court Enters Consent Decree Guaranteeing Muslim Girl's Right to Wear Headscarf to School
In an important victory for the religious liberty of people of all faiths, U.S. District Judge Frank H. Seay entered a consent decree on May 20 in the case of a sixth-grade Muslim girl in Muskogee, Oklahoma who had been barred from wearing her headscarf, (or hijab) to school. The consent decree, reached between the United States, lawyers for the student, and the Muskogee Public School District, will permit her to wear her hijab at school and will also require the school district to accommodate the religious needs of other children. The school had suspended her for eight days in October 2003 for refusing to take off her hijab.
Nashala Hearn had worn her hijab for several weeks at the beginning of the 2003-2004 school year. However, on September 11, 2003, the sixth-grader was told that she could no longer wear her hijab. School officials said that other students were frightened by the hijab, and cited the “no-hats” policy in the school’s dress code. The dress code had not been applied consistently, however. Students with thinning hair due to medical reasons were permitted to wear scarves. The school had also allowed students to wear “Cat in the Hat” hats for Dr. Seuss’s birthday, and to wear hats on other special days. When Nashala refused to take off her hijab, she was suspended.
Nashala, through her father, brought suit against the school district in October 2003, alleging violation of her constitutional rights and violations of Oklahoma law. She was permitted to wear her hijab during the pendency of the lawsuit. The Civil Rights Division opened an investigation in November 2003, and then intervened in the lawsuit upon finding evidence to support a claim based on the denial of her rights under the Constitution’s Equal Protection Clause.
http://www.usdoj.gov/crt/religdisc/newsletter/focus_4.htm#1
The consent decree, which will last for six years, will permit Nashala to wear her hijab, and requires the school district to make similar religious accommodation for any other student in the school system who has a bona fide religious objection to the dress code. The school district will also implement a training program for all teachers and administrators regarding the revised dress code and publicize the revisions to students and parents. The school district also must certify its compliance with the terms of the order to the Department of Justice for a four-year period. In a confidential agreement, the district settled Nashala’s damages claim and claim for expungement of her school records.
“This settlement reaffirms the principle that public schools cannot require students to check their faith at the school house door,” said R. Alexander Acosta, Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights. “The Department of Justice will not tolerate discrimination against Muslims or any other religious group. As the President and the Attorney General have made clear repeatedly, such intolerance is un-American, and is morally despicable.”
