Muslim athlete banned from track meet over uniform
Juashaunna Kelly, a Theodore Roosevelt High School senior (Washington, D.C.) track team who has the fastest mile and two-mile times of any girls' runner in the District of Columbia this winter, was disqualified from the Montgomery Invitational indoor track and field meet in Maryland after officials ruled her Muslim clothing violated national competition rules. Kelly was wearing the same uniform she has worn for the past three seasons while running for her school’s cross-country and track teams: a custom-made, one-piece blue and orange unitard that covers her head, arms, torso and legs. On top of the unitard, Kelly wore the same orange and blue T-shirt and shorts as her teammates. The outfit allows her to compete while complying with her Muslim faith, which forbids displaying any skin other than her face and hands.
Meet director Tom Rogers said Kelly's uniform violated rules of the National Federation of State High School Associations, which sanctioned the event, by not being “a single-solid color and unadorned, except for a single school name or insignia no more than 2 1/4 inches.” He then told Kelly she was disqualified. Rogers said he made three public address announcements prior to Kelly's disqualification requesting that Roosevelt Coach Tony Bowden meet with him. Bowden said he didn't hear any announcements. Rogers said he knew Kelly was wearing the uniform for religious reasons and that he offered her several options to conform to the rules of the meet while still respecting her faith, including placing a plain T-shirt over her unitard and then wearing her team uniform over it. “Every sport has uniform rules. It has nothing to do with religious discrimination,” he said. “They were provided with several options that would have allowed her to run without taking off her head covering.” Sarah Kelly said that was not the case. She said meet referees made several demands of her daughter before Rogers made his decision. “First, they said she had to take her hood off,” she said. “Then, they said she can't have anything with logos displayed. Then, they said she had to turn it inside out. When I told them that there weren't any logos on it, they said she had to put a plain white T-shirt on over it.” Bowden said: "It never started off about color [of her uniform]. It started with her head wear. It wasn't a problem last year, and it's a problem this year? Make me understand why.” “What she needs to do is get some religious documentation saying it's part of her heritage and bring it with her to every meet,” said Jim Vollmer, the commissioner of track for Montgomery County public schools.
Source: Washington Post, 1/16/08, By Alan Goldenbach
Full story: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/01/15/AR2008011503356.html
[Editor’s Note: Information on the resolution of a 2004 lawsuit against an Oklahoma school district over a Muslim student’s wearing of a hijab, or headscarf, is below. COSA members can access a detailed article on “The Next Wave of Religious Accommodations: Responding to Requests by Muslim Students” at the second link, and a short but handy review of the law regarding religious accommodations generally at the third. As in the case summarized at the last link, some courts have found that private organizations such as athletic associations are so “entwined” with school districts as to constitute “state actors” for First Amendment purposes.]
NSBA School Law pages on hijab dispute
Inquiry & Analysis, By Lisa Soronen
Inquiry & Analysis, By Robert A. Lusk & André F. Mayes
NSBA School Law pages on Tennessee Secondary Sch. Athletic Assoc. v. Brentwood Acad.