In recent days, we have received several reports from employees and students from across the area who have expressed confusion around their rights during this time. CAIR-Philadelphia is here to support you as observe Ramadan.
At CAIR-Philadelphia, we believe all people should have the ability to go to public places and not experience harassment or discrimination. Federal law agrees with this principle and mandates that “all persons shall be entitled to the full and equal enjoyment of the goods, services, facilities, privileges, advantages, and accommodations of any place of public accommodation.”
We have fielded complaints from 54 people and have provided legal services to 15 people seeking solutions for employment discrimination, denial of reasonable religious accommodations at school or public places, denial access to international travel, etc., and are actively investigating potential legal remedies for an additional 12 people.
Every year, CAIR-Philadelphia updates you about how our chapter organizes against Islamophobia, anti-Semitism, anti-black racism, white supremacy, and all forms of bigotry. This year, the COVID-19 pandemic imposed unique challenges for all of us, requiring greater flexibility in how we navigated.
In one of his most famous speeches, aptly entitled Who Taught You to Hate Yourself, Malcolm X spoke to an unfortunate truth, “The most disrespected person in America is the Black woman…the most unprotected person in America is the black woman.”
To date, about 40% of the people seeking legal assistance from our office complain of some form of harassment or discrimination in the workplace. Accordingly, several of my current clients have experienced various forms of workplace discrimination, including three different people in various stages of legal action against their current or former employer based on their allegations of religious discrimination and/or harassment.
Hip-Hop is ubiquitous; there are places without running water and electricity that hip-hop has touched. The culture and its expressions have begun the dominant influence on popular youth culture over the span of the past four and a half decades. That is a significant statement considering the culture emerged from a back to school party hosted by two teenagers in the cramped recreation room of their housing project forty-seven years ago.
Employment discrimination is one of the persistent ways bigotry and xenophobia impacts everyday people. Roughly 40% of the people seeking legal assistant from our office call to complain of some form of harassment or discrimination in the workplace. To that end, I am presently representing three different people in various stages of legal action against their current or former employer based on their allegations of religious discrimination and/or harassment.
On Tuesday December 10, 2019, Jacob and I attended a film screening and faith summit entitled Just Mercy Faith Summit. The summit, hosted by Eastern University, convened faith leaders, civil servants, and elected officials who desire to address inequities in the nation’s criminal justice system. It was inspired by the film Just Mercy (a film adaptation of the best-selling book by Bryan Stevenson of the same name)...
