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| Wild scene erupts at Playland: Police arrest 15 in dispute over hijab |
| 2011-08-31 |
| A massive disturbance broke out at Playland Park in Westchester County, New York, Tuesday when a group of Muslim visitors grew angry over park rules forbidding the use of "headgear" on some of its rides. The headgear, in this instance, was the traditional Muslim head covering -- often called a hijab -- worn by women. Authorities from allegedly nine different agencies descended on the fun-park after county police responded to the disturbance, which by that time, involved some 30 to 40 people. Local reports indicate some 3,000 Muslim-Americans had gathered at the park. By 4:30 p.m., nearly two hours after the altercation broke out, some three dozen police cruisers blocked Playland's entrance and a helicopter was seen flying overhead. A reporter allegedly counted roughly 60 cruisers on the scene from various agencies. According to reports, twelve men and three women were arrested, mostly for disorderly conduct, and two park rangers were injured in the scuffle. So far two have been charged with felony assault after officials asserted they attacked park rangers. Lohud reports that the group of Muslims were at Playland to celebrate the Islamic holiday of Eid-ul-Fitr, marking the end of the holy month of Ramadan. The outing was allegedly organized by the Muslim American Society of New York. Playland spokesman Peter Tartaglia stated that park officials were clear in expressing to MASNY the safety reasons behind the headgear ban but said the rules might not have been communicated by the organizer to some of the attendees. The ban, implemented nearly four years ago, is intended to keep hats and other head coverings from falling onto the tracks and derailing rides. "It's a safety issue on rides. If it's a scarf, you could choke," Tartaglia said. |
| Posted by:Beavis |
| #19 Yes, no capes. |
| Posted by: Procopius2k 2011-08-31 20:12 |
| #18 No capes, either |
| Posted by: Cincinnatus Chili 2011-08-31 19:58 |
| #17 Given that Islam basically sat out the whole Industrial Revolution, perhaps they can be forgiven for not understanding the whole "don't wear loose clothing and scarves around machinery" thing. As for the punch-up, it wouldn't be a Muslim holiday without a little violence, would it? |
| Posted by: SteveS 2011-08-31 19:36 |
| #16 What do the SHARIA PERTS say - are these Muslim Babes violating Allah's = Mohammeddan Law in an "Un-Islamic" Way when they ... > Talk to technically "infidel" MSM-NET News Reporters widout acknowledging first that they have the prior consent from their Menfolk. > Ditto again doing the above but widout any proper Burqua to cover their eyes or face. D *** NG IT, ARE THESE US MUSLIM BABES ARE PROMOTING SHARIA BY VIOLATING IT - OOOOOOO, YOU JUST KNOW THERE'S AN "HONOR KILLING", BEHEADING OR AK47 SHOT TO THE HEAD, ETC. SOMEWHERE IN THERE??? |
| Posted by: JosephMendiola 2011-08-31 19:33 |
| #15 There is a relevant historical precedent involving a commie and a scarf: "Isadora Duncan's fondness for flowing scarves was the cause of her death in an automobile accident in Nice, France when she was passenger in a Bugatti, and her silk scarf, draped around her neck, became entangled around the open-spoked wheels and rear axle, breaking her neck." |
| Posted by: Herb Smiter of the Leprechauns9394 2011-08-31 18:29 |
| #14 An "I'm different (i.e., better than you) so treat me special" costume is a liability when the wearer does not get to determine what the "special treatment" is... |
| Posted by: M. Murcek 2011-08-31 16:55 |
| #13 Absolutely AlanC, which is likely why the operator hit the shutdown, then attempted to get bullied into running the ride. I used to frequent one amusement park, they let quite a bit of stuff go, but mess with the safe conduct of a ride and badda-boom ya gone buddy usually fast than you can say Not in the -thump-. |
| Posted by: swksvolFF 2011-08-31 14:20 |
| #12 swks and darth, I agree with you BUT the lawsuits after the tissue removal would be horrendous. This would be like the attractive nuisance problem that swimming pool owners have. Doesn't matter what you do to prevent a problem but if a kid sneaks in and drowns you're still lible. |
| Posted by: AlanC 2011-08-31 14:13 |
| #11 I seem to recall a couple years back that a beheadgeared gal was let on a ride for fear of this, and lost 5 pounds of apparently useless tissue. So other than feeling for the cleanup crew, I'm a bit with Darth here. Saw the TV clip, too much eye rolling for me. |
| Posted by: swksvolFF 2011-08-31 14:09 |
| #10 I say let 'em wear their bullshit headgear and let natural consequences take over. Darwin rules in play. |
| Posted by: DarthVader 2011-08-31 13:54 |
| #9 Did DepotGuy forget the sarcasm tag? Heh, thought the Gates quote was obvious. But I can appreciate FA's misunderstanding. It's not hard to fathom that people are prolly already calling for next years diversity-training at PlayLand to have an entire section on the Hijab. |
| Posted by: DepotGuy 2011-08-31 13:18 |
| #8 by that time, involved some 30 to 40 people. Local reports indicate some 3,000 Muslim-Americans had gathered at the park Sounds like a test run, at the rules. |
| Posted by: Redneck Jim 2011-08-31 13:02 |
| #7 I used to go to Playland too. I agree with the headgear ban - would not want to subject my children to the sight of some idiot being yanked from her Wild Mouse seat and hanged to death, or, of course to getting derailed on the body. Maybe Muslims should have their own amusement park - JazzLand/6 Flags here in New Orleans is probably available cheap. |
| Posted by: Glenmore 2011-08-31 12:58 |
| #6 In early high school time - driving on the snow in my go-cart... and wearing a very long stocking cap... I learned all about cloth getting in a drive chain. I was lucky but it was not fun... These guys are idiots... it might be wiser to stumble through a mine field then have headgear that can get into machinery. |
| Posted by: Water Modem 2011-08-31 12:26 |
| #5 Did DepotGuy forget the sarcasm tag? "Allah did not create man so that he could have fun. The aim of creation was for mankind to be put to the test through hardship and prayer. An Islamic regime must be serious in every field. There are no jokes in Islam. There is no humor in Islam. There is no fun in Islam. There can be no fun and joy in whatever is serious." - Ayatollah Khomeini, 1979 |
| Posted by: Eohippus Phater7165 2011-08-31 12:21 |
| #4 Playland Park Rangers acted stupidly for not allowing Muslims to wear their headgear I grew up near Playland and went there often as a kid. One concern (which is mentioned in the article) is that you don't want long flowing robes catching on anything metalic and dragging them out of their seats. Then (of course) they would be enraged about not being prevented from hurting themselves. there's a long history in this country of Muslim-Americans prevented from riding Amusement Park rides disproportionately See comment above. Playland used to be a great place for families to take their kids. It breaks my heart to see it shut down by scum like this. Al |
| Posted by: Frozen Al 2011-08-31 11:26 |
| #3 I don't know, not having been there and not seeing all the facts, what role religion played in that case. But I think it's fair to say, number one, any of us would be pretty angry; number two, that the Playland Park Rangers acted stupidly for not allowing Muslims to wear their headgear; and, number three, what I think we know separate and apart from this incident is that there's a long history in this country of Muslim-Americans prevented from riding Amusement Park rides disproportionately. That's just a fact. |
| Posted by: DepotGuy 2011-08-31 11:13 |
| #2 The safest sign to see on Air-travel is "No Muslims". |
| Posted by: Bright Pebbles 2011-08-31 11:11 |
| #1 Playland spokesman Peter Tartaglia stated that park officials were clear in expressing to MASNY the safety reasons behind the headgear ban but said the rules might not have been communicated by the organizer to some of the attendees. Oh, ummmmmm...we "forgot". I think they saw a golden opportunity to play the seething card dropped in their laps. |
| Posted by: tu3031 2011-08-31 11:02 |