Two Muslim inmates from the Pierce County Jail in Tacoma are suing, claiming they are banned from practicing their religion. The lawsuit was filed this week in federal court in Tacoma with the help of the ACLU and Public Interest Law Group, The News Tribune reported Thursday. The lawsuit also names the sheriff's department, which runs the jail, and eight jail officials.
Raymond Wesley Garland and Larry Edward Tarrer say the jail prohibits Muslims from group prayer, bans certain religious clothing and refuses to accommodate their diet. A deputy prosecutor who represents the jail, Craig Adams, disputes the claims. He says the jail offers Muslims meals without pork and allows them to pray together and perform ritual cleansing. [THE ASSOCIATED PRESS] Read more
Islamic accommodations in Washington state jails: Power plays and priorities Regarding uniforms, and Muslim inmates' complains about bans on "certain religious clothing": Of all places, the social equalizer that uniforms provide is essential to attempting to keep the peace in a jail. The last thing one ought to want in a place where no one wants to be, but they all got there for a reason, is the emergence of a visibly privileged class to stir the pot.
One must wonder what the specific grievance is: no skullcaps? When did they become a pillar of Islam? Or, are the pants too long, trailing on the ground in a most un-Sunnah way? Either way, one returns to the fundamental purpose of having uniforms in the first place. [Jihad Watch] Read more
