Medina v. County of San Bernardino
Jameelah Medina
"I started wearing the hijab when I was 19 years old. I wanted to feel in charge of my own femininity and create my own empowerment as the gatekeeper of my own body. It all goes back to maintaining my sense of privacy and not making public what I perceive as intimate.
"When I was forced to remove my hijab, I felt embarrassment, injustice, shame, powerlessness, anger, and even rage. Most of all, I felt utterly humiliated and violated. The next day, I felt a sense of mobility like I had to file the complaint and take some action.
"Two and a half years after it all, I still have many of the same feelings, but I have most certainly learned that the shame is on those who violated my rights, not on me."
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In October 2008, the County of San Bernardino agreed to adopt a policy accommodating the right of Muslim women to wear headscarves in accordance with their religious beliefs in County Jails. The County agreed to implement the new policy as part of the settlement of a lawsuit brought by the ACLU of Southern California, the ACLU Women's Rights Project, and the ACLU Program on Freedom of Religion and Belief. The lawsuit was filed on December 5, 2007 on behalf of Jameelah Medina, a practicing Muslim woman who was forced by local deputies to remove her headscarf (hijab) while she was in custody in San Bernardino County's West Valley Detention Center. Ms. Medina was arrested in 2005 at a Metrolink commuter rail system station for having an invalid train pass and was taken to the West Valley Detention Center in Rancho Cucamonga for processing. Ms. Medina, who was born in the United States and raised in a Muslim family, wears a headscarf to cover her hair, ears, neck, and part of her chest in public and in the presence of men who are not her immediate family members, in accordance with her religious beliefs. Despite her repeated requests to keep her head covered during her day-long incarceration, she was forced to remove her hijab in the presence of male guards and to remain uncovered for much of the day. Ms. Medina was never prosecuted in connection with the arrest.
The ACLU sued the County and its officials for violating Ms. Medina's rights under the First Amendment of the Constitution, the federal Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act (RLUIPA, which protects the religious rights of people confined to institutions), the California Constitution, and a California civil rights statute.
Under the settlement agreement, the county agreed to adopt a policy to accommodate women who wear headscarves for religious reasons. Under the new policy, women who are arrested will not be required to remove their headscarves in the view of male officers and will be provided with temporary headscarves to wear while they are in custody. The county will train police officers on the new policy and has designated a point-person to handle any disputes or complaints that arise about the policy's implementation.
NEWS
> San Bernardino County Agrees To Allow Religious Head Scarves In County Jails (11/3/2008)
> Muslim Woman Sues San Bernardino County Over Religious Freedom in Jail (12/6/2007)
LEARN MORE
> Fact Sheet: Discrimination Against Muslim Women
> Q&A: The Practice of Hijab
> Profile of Jameelah Medina
> Blog: A Call to Action for Women of All Beliefs (12/19/2008)
> Blog: Court Allows Muslim Woman's Headscarf Case to Proceed (2/27/2008)
> "Rialto Muslim woman's headscarf lawsuit allowed to move forward," Press Enterprise (2/25/2008)
> Women and Terrorism (Keynote address by Susan N. Herman) (3/6/2009)
LEGAL DOCUMENTS
> Medina v. County of San Bernardino - Settlement (10/30/2008)
> Medina v. County of San Bernardino - Order Denying Motion to Dismiss (2/25/2008)
> Medina v. County of San Bernardino - Opposition to Motion to Dismiss (2/11/2008)
> ACLU Complaint in Medina v. County of San Bernardino (12/6/2007)
OTHER HIJAB CASES
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Denial of Access to Court to Muslim Women Wearing Headscarves - Press Statement (12/17/2008) (Off-Site)
> Webb v. City of Philadelphia - Amicus Brief (1/9/2008)
> Khatib v. County of Orange (9/5/2007) (Off-Site)
> Hussein v. City of Omaha - Press Release (2/18/2005)
> Barns v. Gifford - ACLU-NV Complaint (10/14/2004)
> Freeman v. State of Florida - Press Release(5/27/2003)
> Kaukab v. Harris - Press Release(1/16/2002)
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