Hawzah News Agency- The lawsuit claims that ODOC officials have systematically denied religious accommodations, violating the constitutional and statutory rights of Amir’Whadi Hassan, Niaz Khoshnaw, and Hamza Jama.
It alleges that the inmates were refused certified halal meals and were denied the opportunity to celebrate Eid holidays with congregational prayer and family visitations.
In contrast, the lawsuit notes that Jewish, Native American, and Christian inmates receive religious accommodations, including holiday meals and enhanced visiting privileges.
There are two Islamic holidays named Eid. Eid al-Fitr is the celebration marking the end of Ramadan, a holy month of fasting and prayer. Eid al-Adha is a festival marking the end of pilgrimage and commemorating the willingness of the Prophet Ibrahim to sacrifice his son Ismail.
Halal in terms of food refers to Islamically-permitted meals following guidelines similar to kosher for the Jewish community. Halal guidelines prohibit consumption of foods containing pork or alcohol.
"This case is about equal access to and accommodations for religious practice'', said CAIR Deputy Litigation Director Gadeir Abbas. "Oregon prison officials have no justification for denying Muslim men the ability to eat in accordance with their faith or celebrate their holiest days as other religious communities are permitted to do''.
CAIR Staff Attorney Aya Beydoun added, "Every faith group deserves equal treatment. By denying halal meals and blocking family visitation for Eid—while extending those same accommodations to other religious groups—ODOC is violating both the Constitution and federal law''.
The lawsuit, filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Oregon, seeks court-ordered relief requiring ODOC to provide nutritionally sufficient and certified halal meals daily, implement food-handling protocols to prevent pork contamination, offer certified halal meals to all similarly situated Muslims in ODOC custody upon request, and restore family visitation and religious accommodations for Eid in the same manner afforded to other religious groups.
Source: KCBY
Your Comment