Muslim woman says gas station refused her service

Local 10 ^ | 2/1/2012 | Ben Kennedy

[SoFloFreeper]

A South Florida Muslim woman has hired a lawyer after claiming she was refused service at a Boca Raton gas station because of her religion.

La Fleur Mohamed said she was humiliated in the incident at a Chevron gas station.

Very painful, very painful -- (I) felt really embarrassed," she said.

Mohamed said the attendant refused to let her fill up because she wears niqab, or face veil, because of her religion. She claimed the attendant threw the money back at her and told her to leave.

“I said, ‘Excuse me, but this is my religious right.’ She said, ‘Well, I need to see you.’ I said, ‘No, you don’t. Please just give me $20 on pump No. 1,’ and that’s when she just threw my money back at me,” Mohamed said.

Mohamed called 911 and a police officer showed up, but the attendant wouldn’t change her mind.

“He went in and asked her why she’s not serving me, and she said that it’s company policy not to serve people like me,” Mohamed said.

Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office records state Mohamed did not have enough gas to get to another station.

Dispatch also told arriving deputies, "They are refusing to give her gas because of her religion."

Mohamed said Chevron officials apologized but claimed they found no evidence of discrimination, and she hired a lawyer, Wilfredo Ruiz.

“In this particular case, when somebody’s escorted by law enforcement and asked to be served and what she hears is a refusal, there’s no doubt that this is a violation of Title 2 of the Civil Rights Act,” Ruiz said.

Mohamed is also taking her complaint to the Florida Commission on Human Relations, a state agency that is now investigating.

“I need people to be aware that we are here. We’re Americans, and we deserve the same right, the same treatment as everyone else,” Mohamed said.

Mohamed said she wants an apology and for Chevron to launch a discrimination training program for employees.

In response, Chevron spokesman Brent Tippen released the following statement:

"Chevron continues to take Ms. Mohamed’s allegations seriously.

"In response to the incident which occurred in October last year, we conducted a thorough investigation. We spoke with our employee cashier and reviewed the store surveillance tape. The incident occurred within a few days of Halloween -- a time when retailers are prone to increased theft from persons wearing masks and other facial coverings. In light of this concern, we acknowledge that our employee did ask Ms. Mohamed to remove her veil for security purposes; when she refused, she was denied service.

"We fully believe that our employee acted without the intent to violate Ms. Mohamed’s religious principles and any suggestion that discrimination is acceptable at Chevron is completely false. Chevron employs 60,000 people from countries across the globe. Our Human Rights policy requires that we treat all people with respect and dignity.

"Regardless, we regret the misunderstanding. We have apologized twice to Ms. Mohamed and encouraged our employees to be more aware of potential diversity issues."

Local 10 asked Tippen, if the employee thought Mohamed was going to steal or that she was dressed for Halloween, how would he explain the attendant refusing to serve Mohamed when the Palm Beach County deputy was there, vouching that Mohamed was a legitimate customer? Tippen responded:

"The cashier was asked by the police officer about the issue. The cashier indicated that she was following publicly posted instructions to ask customers to remove masks or other facial coverings for security camera purposes. This is consistent with Chevron’s focus on safety for both its employees and customers. The officer was only inquiring about the cashier’s decision, not to assist with the transaction.

"Again we acknowledge that this incident was a misunderstanding. It is not our policy to deny service to customers based on their religious dress. Ms. Mohamed would be served if she came into one of our stores tomorrow."

[jiggyboy]

Nice find. Businesses in FL would do well to put that on a sign where the mandatory “no smoking near pumps” signs are posted.

[Caribou]

It's hypocritical for them to claim religion when it comes to the veil but it's OK to drive. In Arab countries, women are forbidden to drive.

[onedoug]

In saudi she´d be stoned to death.

[TweetEBird007]

That law was passed years ago.

[drpix]

I'm not a lawyer but I believe that statute referring to "public property of any municipality or county of the state" is not meant to include private businesses.

["FLORIDA Chapter 876 Criminal Anarchy, Treason and other Crimes Against Public Order -------- 876.13 Wearing mask, hood, or other device on public property. --- No person or persons shall in this state, while wearing any mask, hood, or device whereby any portion of the face is so hidden, concealed, or covered as to conceal the identity of the wearer, enter upon, or be, or appear upon or within the public property of any municipality or county of the state."]

But I believe the same right/law that allows private businesses to install and use surveillance cameras - the right/law of self protection - would allow a business to require a customer to not conceal their identity (with a masks or hoods).

Not doing business with someone concealing their identity in a mask or hood is a security, not religious, issue. She could always have a Muslim without a hood (male) accompany her to fill up her gas-tank for her.

[Kirkwood]

I didn’t mean that the law applied to what took place at the gas station. However she was driving a car on public streets wearing her mask/hood, so why are the police in Florida afraid to enforce the law? I’ve also seen masked muslims go through homeland security checkpoints in Ft Lauderdale at the cruise port. Seems like very lax law enforcement.

[drpix]

THAT IS INSANE!

Why issue a photo drivers license?
Why require photo ID to get that license?
Why do require drivers to produce that ID for cops?
IF THERE IS NO FACE IN THE PHOTO?????

[Conscience of a Conservative]

876.155 Applicability; ss. 876.12-876.15.—The provisions of ss. 876.12-876.15 apply only if the person was wearing the mask, hood, or other device:

(1) With the intent to deprive any person or class of persons of the equal protection of the laws or of equal privileges and immunities under the laws or for the purpose of preventing the constituted authorities of this state or any subdivision thereof from, or hindering them in, giving or securing to all persons within this state the equal protection of the laws;

(2) With the intent, by force or threat of force, to injure, intimidate, or interfere with any person because of the person’s exercise of any right secured by federal, state, or local law or to intimidate such person or any other person or any class of persons from exercising any right secured by federal, state, or local law;

(3) With the intent to intimidate, threaten, abuse, or harass any other person; or

(4) While she or he was engaged in conduct that could reasonably lead to the institution of a civil or criminal proceeding against her or him, with the intent of avoiding identification in such a proceeding.

[Conscience of a Conservative]

Paying cash upfront is irrelevant. After handing him the cash, she could have pulled out a gun and robbed and possibly killed the cashier.

And after the cashier refused service, she could have pulled out a gun and robbed and possibly killed the cashier. If that was her intent, the cashier's actions would not have made a difference.

[Conscience of a Conservative]

I didn’t mean that the law applied to what took place at the gas station. However she was driving a car on public streets wearing her mask/hood, so why are the police in Florida afraid to enforce the law? I’ve also seen masked muslims go through homeland security checkpoints in Ft Lauderdale at the cruise port. Seems like very lax law enforcement.

The police in Florida are not "afraid to enforce the law." The law simply does not prohibit what you think it prohibits. See my previous post, which places the section you posted in context.

[Above My Pay Grade]

So, do you believe all business should be compelled to serve “customers” wearing ski-masks, goalie masks, Halloween masks, and any other face coverings?

[Conscience of a Conservative]

So, do you believe all business should be compelled to serve “customers” wearing ski-masks, goalie masks, Halloween masks, and any other face coverings?

Nope, didn't say that. I was just pointing out that, in this instance, it's pretty unlikely that this woman intended to commit a crime, and that your rationale (that she may have pulled out a gun after paying) was just as possible after the cashier refused service as it would have been had the cashier accepted the money and turned on the pump.

[stuartcr]

Excellent stretch.

[Above My Pay Grade]

Looking at the video, I think it should be illegal to drive wearing that getup, for road safety reasons alone. Her peripheral vision could definitely be impaired by that outfit.

She should have been arrested for abuse of the 911 system. If she wanted to file a lawsuit, fine. But, her 911 call was just a reckless as the clowns who have called 911 when McDonalds ran out of McNuggets or Taco Bell refused walk up service at the drive through window.

[Conscience of a Conservative]

If the money was counterfeit, then either (a) the cashier would have discovered it immediately and not turned on the pump, or (b) the counterfeit would not have been discovered until the cashier reconciled the cash drawer at the end of the shift (or, even more likely, until the bank processed the store’s next deposit), and the store never would have known which customer passed the counterfeit bill. People who pass counterfeit bills are, almost without fail, either caught in the act or not caught at all, so this woman’s mask would have had no effect.

[Above My Pay Grade]

The bottom line is, the cashier, shouldn't have to try to determine which mask wearers are threats and which are not. Allowing masked individuals on the premises, which renders the essential deterrent and protection of security cameras useless, is a danger to the employees and customers.

If an individual drives around town in what looks like a ninja costume that person should expect to be treated like a potential criminal.

Did you look at the video or photo? This person looks frightening.

[BfloGuy]

If a private company does not want to do business with a private individual what right do the police have to MAKE THEM?

That's a right we lost decades ago. Civil rights for others, don'cha know.

[houeto]

ROP aside, what if this would've been a bank?

You're not even allowed to wear a baseball cap into my bank.

[kaboom]

The counterfeit argument was just against the specific question of how a cash transaction could come under scrutiny.

It's doubtful that a counterfeiter would call 911 for assistance with payment (you never know), but it should be the stations right to refuse to do business with anyone wearing a mask or any other garb that hides their identity.

If the policy is in place, then it should be applied to all customers.

[Jonty30]

The part of her paying first is what I missed. However, at least in my jurisdiction, I need to be able to identify the person on a definitely level, because as far as the police are concerned, it is possible that she parked a block down the street and somebody else, also dressed in an identical burka, took the driving wheel.

Assuming a lack of bigotry on the part of the clerk, I can see an issue of safety of filling up, because the burka would hinder the woman from seeing what she is doing or realizing she was near an ingnition source and catching fire, then suing the station owner.