[GovernmentShrinker]

This sort of idiocy just radicalizes young Muslims. This girl is obviously not interested being any sort of extremist, given that she’s competing on a track team in public while wearing an outfit that would earn her an honor killing in extremist Muslim circles. Why smack her down? Why give her reasons to want to turn away from us?

[StAnDeliver]

I’m inclined to agree with you Shrinker — you’d think the extra baggage would be a self-imposement. That said, the conservative way is to give the local board’s decision the benefit of the doubt (even in the absurdo ad reductum that is the DC public school system), even if it doesn’t appear, on the surface, to pass the scratch test.

[Huntress]

I’m with you. From the story, it also sounds like this young lady provided her own custom uniform rather than demanding that the school provide one for her. It appears the she came up with a sensible compromise between her religious beliefs and the school’s uniform requirements. I would hope that that a conservative Christian or Orthodox Jewish girl in a similar situation would be allowed a similar accomodation.

[Gator101]

This sort of idiocy just radicalizes young Muslims

I gotta agree in this case. What good does this do? It's not as if she is demanding to cover her face in a drivers license photo or not have sell pork if after she chose to work in a grocery store. She simply found a way to meet her religious needs while participating in American culture. It sure doesn't seem to give her a competitive edge. I say let her run in the outfit and be an example to other young Muslims that our culture is one that will accept differences (within reason). It is their old culture back in its birthplace that is the exclusive and backwards culture.

[mountainbunny]

Why smack her down? Why give her reasons to want to turn away from us?

It isn't smacking her down to tell her that she has to wear the same clothes as other students. It is a matter of fairness.

There can be a tremendous physical advantage getting to wear warm clothes when the girls running next to her in the photo are wearing thin shorts and it is cold and wintry. The article says that she "has the fastest mile and two-mile times of any girls' runner in the city this winter".

If I was a competing runner, I would be sure that either I got to wear the same clothes as she does if I chose to do so, or that she followed the same rules as I'd have to. Why is her race more important than those of the other students?

[VeniVidiVici]

Why smack her down? Why give her reasons to want to turn away from us?

Yeah, can't have her turn towards us, Daddy may smack her down.

[Katya]

exactly....