Posted on 02/02/2012 5:51:53 AM PST by 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."
—How does a store clerk know “in advance” the intent of someone who enters the store with their face covered over?—
He doesn’t. I’m talking about the intent she demonstrated when she tried to hand the clerk the *cash* to buy gas. And worse, even when the police were there.
What she (the clerk) should have done is act like she thought a burglary was about to be committed when she saw the person walk up to the booth wearing a burka. IOW, pull out the shotgun.
Can you imagine a “multicultural” country where one culture believes in covering women from head to toe while another believes women should never wear more than sandals? Wonder if there would be much social friction. ;-)
Fact is, even religious freedom has its limits within a free society. It’s why a religious group cannot enjoy snorting coke as part of their ritual, and why, in a society where identification through facial features, one cannot simply walk around with their head completely covered up and expect to do business with strangers.
And burkas are not religious. They are cultural.
Like in Saudi Arabia, a good muzzie woman shouldn’t be driving in the first place. She should be home, barefoot and pregnant in the kitchen building improvised explosive devices aiding in the downfall of western civilization.
—If a private company does not want to do business with a private individual what right do the police have to MAKE THEM?—
That changed a long time ago. Remember Jim Crow?
Newsflash! My bank has the same instruction. There is a reason for it: would-be robbers could easily disguise their identity under a veil or hide a weapon under a hijab.
Guess what? I take off my hat and dark glasses when I approach the counter because I do not want it to be an issue.
I missed that. You are right. It is within the vein of “no shoes, no shirts, no service.”
I stand corrected. Even with the cops there, the company’s policy is clearly stated, and should be completely within the law.
I do think political correctness will be our undoing.
Wrong. They're proscribed under the hijab dress code and are very muslim.
They can either show their face or take their treacherous asses back to several third world countries of their own creation.
Banks in my area have signs requesting customers to remove hoodies and sunglasses for security purposes. I’ve lived in this town for 30 years and have been in and out of the banks on a regular basis, they know me. One day I went in wearing sunglasses, the teller who knows me asked me to remove the sunglasses so the camera could see my face, it wasn’t a big deal, I removed the sunglasses.
She’s not embarrassed by wearing robe that covers every square inch of her body topped off by a head covering and veil that covers everything but the slits of her eyes.
Maybe, just maybe its painful for American women to have to look at the pathetic sight of another woman hiding herself from society in a free country because some man told her to.
As far as I’m concerned Muslims have zero right to be in this country. The believe in a subversive ideology, not a religion, and by default are here for unfriendly purposes. I wouldn’t let them in no more than I would have a ardent Soviet communist during the Cold War who claimed to be peaceful and non-violent.
—Wrong. They’re proscribed under the hijab dress code and are very muslim.—
Like Christianity, Islam has cultural (not religious) practices. Burka’s are no more religious than stained glass, pipe organs or Christmas trees.
On a scale of gas refusal to genital mutilation, how painful was it, really?
To leech off our success and replace it with their failed culture— the same as in Europe. Makes perfect sense, right?
—Wrong. They’re proscribed under the hijab dress code and are very muslim.—
Oh, and this is as good a rundown as any: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Burqa
Islam is a made up religion by one guy, Mohammad, a murdering, thieving, illiterate, child molester.
—Wrong. They’re proscribed under the hijab dress code and are very muslim.—
This is a good one too: http://www.apologeticsindex.org/504-muslim-veils
I’ll feel sorry for her when they allow Christians to have a Bible in Saudi Arabia. Heck they don’t even allow women to drive there.
The covering dress code and the veil predates islam and was a cultural custom.
Maybe the attendant thought she shouldn’t drive, because she is a terrorist...and they don’t have the right to drive in terrorist countries.
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