Laist.com
Imane Boudlal, right, at her press conference in 2010 (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)
A Muslim woman who made headlines in 2010 when she said she lost her job at Disney’s California Adventure because she refused to doff her head scarf, or hijab, is now suing the resort for religious discrimination and harassment.
Imane Boudlal, 28, is a naturalized U.S. citizen born in Morocco. An observant Muslim, Boudlal said she was denied the right to wear he hijab while working as a hostess at the Storytellers Cafe in the Grand Californian Hotel in Downtown Disney on the grounds it did not mesh with the “Disney look.”
The woman was offered alternatives, like a scarf with the Disney logo, but the alternatives also included being moved out of the public eye and into a back area. She was also offered the option to put a large fedora over her hijab.
Boudlal said she was taken off the work scheduleand ultimately not given any more hours when she would not comply. She first announced her intent to sue two years ago, but has just filed suit, according to NBC Los Angeles.
Disney spokeswoman Suzi Brown said the following in a statement, after noting she had not read the lawsuit, and would not comment further on its specifics: “Walt Disney Parks and Resorts has a long history of accommodating a variety of religious requests from cast members of all faiths.”
Boudlal says her experience differs. The lawsuit “asks for a permanent injunction requiring Disney not to prohibit employees from wearing hijabs, as well as punitive damages and anti-harassment training for company employees that includes Muslim issues,” notes NBC Los Angeles.
UPDATE: Boudlal is represented by attorneys from the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) according to City News Service.
Mark Rosenbaum, chief counsel for the ACLU of Southern California said of Boudlal’s plight: “Had Imane been Princess Jasmine, a cartoon Muslim, Disney would not only have permitted her to wear a hijab, they would have exploited it.”
Another ACLU attorney, Anne Richardson, remarked: “At Disney, animated characters have more civil rights than the people who work there.”
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By Lindsay William-Ross in News on August 13, 2012 12:00 PM
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