You have commented 339 times on Rantburg.

Your Name
Your e-mail (optional)
Website (optional)
My Original Nic        Pic-a-Nic        Sorry. Comments have been closed on this article.
Bold Italic Underline Strike Bullet Blockquote Small Big Link Squish Foto Photo
Britain
Schoolgirl loses Muslim gown case
2004-06-15
Shabina Begum had wanted to wear a full-length jilbab gown
A 15-year-old girl has lost her High Court battle to wear a style of Islamic dress to school. Shabina Begum has been out of her Luton school since September 2002 in a row over her wish to wear an ankle-length jilbab gown. She said her religious rights and education were being denied. But Denbigh High School said the jilbab was a health and safety risk, and it already offered an alternative uniform for its Muslim pupils. The long gown is worn by some Muslim women who seek to cover their arms and legs, but not faces or hands. Outside court, the school’s solicitor Iqbal Javed said the uniform had been agreed after wide consultation and the focus would now be on readmitting Shabina to school.

Return to school

"The uniform is designed to be inclusive and takes into account the cultural and sensitive needs of the pupils," he said. "Its appropriateness for Muslim students was recently reiterated by the local Council of Mosques. Naturally we are pleased the council and school has been successful. We now want to concentrate our efforts on reintegrating Shabina Begum back into school as quickly as possible to prevent any further loss to her school career."

There was no immediate comment from lawyers for Shabina.

Denbigh is a 1,000-pupil comprehensive where almost 80% of pupils are Muslim.

Human rights claim

Lawyers had told the court it had a flexible school uniform policy which took into account all faiths and cultures and was not acting in a discriminatory manner. The case echoed controversy in France, where politicians have voted for a ban on religious symbols in schools, including the hijab, the headscarf worn by Muslim girls and women.

Shabina’s solicitor-advocate Yvonne Spencer had told the High Court the school’s ban on her chosen Islamic dress amounted to "constructive exclusion" and breached both domestic law and the European Convention on Human Rights. But Simon Birks, appearing for the school, said Shabina had not been excluded but had chosen to stay away. Muslim girls could wear an alternative uniform option of the traditional shalwar kameez trousers and jerkin outfit but the jilbab presented a health and safety risk, he said.

Notable that this is an 80% muslim school - it only takes one nobber to spoil things for the majority - if she’d succeeded I wonder how many other girls would have been forcibly ’Jilbabbed’ by their families? Funny how the lawyer representing the school was presumably muslim and the family’s was presumably English. Check out the range of Jilbabs at Islamic Boutique - I personally like the look of the ’Luxurious Jilbab’ for a forthcoming stag-do. They do welcome wholesale orders and who knows - they may throw in a fez or a pair of antlers.
Posted by:Howard UK

#13  Abdul Bari, deputy leader of the Muslim Council of Britain said the High Court's "landmark decision" was "very worrying and objectionable".

"The British Muslim community is a diverse community in terms of the interpretation and understanding of their faith and its practice," said Dr Bari.

"Within this broad spectrum those that believe and choose to wear the jilbab and consider it to be part of their faith requirement for modest attire should be respected."

The Muslim Council of Britain is a disgrace - whilst having been forced into making a piecemeal statement denouncing terrorist acts in the UK we can see that their ultimate aim is to have women educated in burkhas - let the children grow up normally and we may gain some form of understanding between faiths. I hope that the UK follows the French model in years to come and not fall prey to the culturally domineering MCB.
Posted by: Howard UK   2004-06-16 4:23:46 AM  

#12  It is completely inexcusable that these Islamoturds are pairing early learning and games activities with their sick political aims. Didn't Hitler have something similar? A "club" for boys and girls.

The hangman "game" certainly reminded me of the Fallujah bridge.

These are very bad people.
Posted by: ex-lib   2004-06-15 6:48:28 PM  

#11  Mike,

Amen, dude. I couldn't agree more which is why I oppose our public schools allowing Muslim girls to wear their scarves. I hate to pick on little Muslim girls (which is probably why they are used to challenge dress codes in court) but I never forget that Turkey which is a 99% Muslim country has also banned Islamic dress in any public institution because they know from long experience that when Islamic dress is allowed at all, overwhelming pressure is then brought to bear on those who aren't as 'obedient' to also wear the dress often against their own personal conscience.
Posted by: peggy   2004-06-15 2:00:31 PM  

#10  #4 You make a good point, Howard. This particular dress-code dispute takes place in a social environment that intends to restrict rather than broaden the freedom of girls. Allowing this one girl to dress in this extremely covered and Moslem manner would eventually exert social pressure on the other girls to follow suit. Some disputes about dress codes are very different than other disputes about dress codes.

I believe that this is the same line of reasoning used by French authorities in banning both religious garb and symbols from schools. While I usually oppose infringement upon the right to religious practices, this rationale made eminent sense.
Posted by: Zenster   2004-06-15 1:54:31 PM  

#9  RE: Islamic Fun CD-ROM.

You have to start early if you want a successfully brainwashed little uniformist who would only be too happy to dress in the exact same sacks as all the other girls!

Posted by: peggy   2004-06-15 1:42:02 PM  

#8  It seems that the media is silent when they, the zionists,..

BZZZZZZZZT!!!! Game over.
Posted by: Bomb-a-rama   2004-06-15 12:42:38 PM  

#7  Mwaaahahaha!

I just checked out the Islamic Boutique and is it me or does every "jilbab" look EXACTLY the sam ie dull, unattractive?

But that isn't the worst. Did anyone check out the Islamic Games section of the site. This is just too rich. There are two games. One is a quiz and the other one is HANGMAN! Lmao. Have to see to believe. The hangman graphic actually flames, I guess since the normal plain way of drawing it wasn't barbaric enough for Muslim tastes or something.

Posted by: peggy   2004-06-15 12:35:15 PM  

#6  Quite the site, Howard. The Khimar was definitely a fashion statement. It must have taken its inspiration from a sand blasting hood.
Posted by: Alaska Paul   2004-06-15 11:42:17 AM  

#5  Wonder if Shabina will be back in court soon demanding her rights to an anesthesia-free clitorectomy/infibulation procedure.
Posted by: jules 187   2004-06-15 10:31:42 AM  

#4  You make a good point, Howard. This particular dress-code dispute takes place in a social environment that intends to restrict rather than broaden the freedom of girls. Allowing this one girl to dress in this extremely covered and Moslem manner would eventually exert social pressure on the other girls to follow suit. Some disputes about dress codes are very different than other disputes about dress codes.
Posted by: Mike Sylwester   2004-06-15 8:32:53 AM  

#3  Good Heavens, here's the literal bottom line from the CD ad....
(*) Some in the media have kicked up a fuss over this game. It seems that the media is silent when they, the zionists, use their tanks to slaughter our children but when our children play a shoot-em up game where they shoot zionist tanks in return for correct answers we are accused of training terrorists and instilling hatred towards Jews! On the contrary the questions in the game educate children not to fall for the zionist lie that zionism, jewishness and Judaism are synonymous but to understand that zionism, a racist ideology, has nothing to do with Judaism - one of the questions in the history/politics section asks "What is the difference between a Jew and a zionist?".


Im bet Gentle probably made it o the last level on this shooter.
Posted by: Shipman   2004-06-15 8:09:28 AM  

#2  Islamic Fun CD ROM - good to while away the hours purposefully.

Posted by: Howard UK   2004-06-15 7:12:02 AM  

#1  LOL Howard, that site's a hoot. Did you see under 'Islamic Games' you can play hangman? The little screaming hanging man (an apostate, presumably) is also on fire, cos he didn't know the names of Allah... Cute!
Posted by: Bulldog   2004-06-15 6:52:56 AM  

00:00