A York Region bus driver has been reinstated after being suspended for refusing to take off his kufi – an Islamic cap – while on the job.
McGregory Jackman, a newly hired bus driver for York Region’s VIVA transit system, said he was humiliated when an inspector with his contractor, Veolia Transportation Inc., sent him home for donning the kufi at work.
“Just having to walk off the bus by someone telling you you can’t work because of your religious conviction, that was tearing me apart right then and there,” said the 43-year-old father of two, who was suspended for a week without pay.
York Region Transit general manager Don Gordon said Mr. Jackman will be back at work tomorrow, and be compensated for his time off, after discussions today between YRT and Veolia Transportation Inc.
“Mr. Jackman will be permitted to wear his kufi while driving our buses,” he said.
Until now, YRT employees who wanted religious accommodation for their clothing had to get a written statement from religious leaders to prove their faith.
That policy will be revised, Mr. Gordon said. “I believe that the individual can make the request and supply the documentation and it does not necessarily have to come from a cleric ... Our guide is the Ontario Human Rights Code,” he said.
Nadir Shirazi, a diversity consultant who met Mr. Jackman, a convert from Christianity, through his mosque and helped him through his suspension, said organizations such as the YRT need educate themselves on issues of cultural sensitivity so cases like this don’t happen.
“If we’re really talking diversity we should start practising it because York region said we have policies in place for diversity. What happens if you’re a Sikh person, or a Jewish person, or a Hindu person or a Christian, every person is going to have to bring a letter of accommodation?” he said.
Anver Emon, an Islamic law professor at the University of Toronto, said a kufi isn’t obligatory for Muslim men, but it does speak for one’s identity.
“It certainly has the effect in our current climate denoting one’s identity as Muslim. In that sense, we see it culturally becoming very prominent, in the same way that wearing a cross around your neck or a Star of David around your neck is expressive religiously, socially, in a very public way, of one’s identity,” he said.
“I think what’s interesting is whenever we think of religious garb, whether it’s the Sikh turban, or the kufi, when we see them in the public sphere, there is a strong desire to remove them, in a sense to keep them private,” Mr. Emon added.
Re: Muslim bus driver who wouldn't remove kufi gets his job back
I wonder, since when "kufi" became compulsory part of Islamic dress code?
Is it like sikh turban and Jewish skull cap?
some of these new "Muslims" are actually damaging Muslims rather than helping Islam!!!
BTW. it is NOT thats "like telling a girl u cant work unless u take ur hijaab off". a man's modesty is from his belly button to his knees, his head is Not part of his body that must be covered.
Re: Muslim bus driver who wouldn't remove kufi gets his job back
format_quote Originally Posted by NoName55
BTW. it is NOT thats "like telling a girl u cant work unless u take ur hijaab off". a man's modesty is from his belly button to his knees, his head is Not part of his body that mut be covered.
Agreed, you can't compare this to hijab since hijab is an obligation, covering the head for men is not.
Why are you people twisting my meaning man, u know I didn't mean it in that way!!
I think you should know that I'll never, on pupose, twist your words, It is just unfortunate when people I actually like are hurt when I am venting at fakers and pretenders who are out to harm our reputation either through ignorance (nOObs in Islam/the illiterate) or deliberate design (infilterators/temporary muslims)
Re: Muslim bus driver who wouldn't remove kufi gets his job back
A company does have a right to implement a dress code for its employees. I could understand an uproar if the headwear in question was a religious obligation, but from what I gather it wasn't. The main question would be if the bus company prohibited its employees from wearing baseball caps or any form of head covering...if they didn't then this guy was singled out for other reasons...but if they did, then it was only part of company policy.
"Imagination was given to man to compensate him for what he is not, and a sense of humor was provided to console him for what he is."
If bringing hatred, mocking and resentment towards the ummah is "love of Sunnah" I wonder what absolute pit of ignorance is!
BTW. Is there anyone here who knows or cares to know the "DOs and DON'Ts" which are prescibed for a *REAL* Muslim (as opposed to posers) in a non-Muslim country, as regards to blending in to the crowd in times of strife and danger?
if there were any full time mods, the post that this was a reply to would have been seen (before it got altered)!
in any case is there any thing more insulting than spreading mis-information about islam? opening it up to ridicule over silly innovations and then saying ooh look me poor muslim is not allowed to wear my skull cap, while drawing attention away from real injustice being done to Muslims around the globe?
yeah great idea, forget everything else going on but make a stand on kufi and lets declare "jihad" on English bus companies
if there were any full time mods, the post that this was a reply to would have been seen (before it got altered)!
in any case is there any thing more insulting than spreading mis-information about islam? opening it up to ridicule over silly innovations and then saying ooh look me poor muslim is not allowed to wear my skull cap, while drawing attention away from real injustice being done to Muslims around the globe?
yeah great idea, forget everything else going on but make a stand on kufi and lets declare "jihad" on English bus companies
My post was changed because of the 'do not debate with people of innovated beliefs' thing in your signature. I do not consider it being 'cunning' or deciving. It is just what happens when I get angry. I write a long post about why I am angry, and then I change it or not post it at all when I finish the post because I have cooled off or think that it was too harsh and impolite. You just happened to catch it before I decided 'on second thoughts that was too harsh' and changed it.
Spreading misinformation about Islam is insulting. But I (along with everybody else I know) am not a person who considers wearing a skullcap or turban to be spreading misinformation. I won't go into that because it is, as your signature says, debating with people of deviant beliefs.
As for drawing attention away from real injustice, I would disagree with that as well. Most of my posts that complain about things complain about how other Muslims act, e.g. mindless extremism, bad 'science', a general victim complex etc. This has to be the first time on this forum in ages when I complained about the way non-Muslims ('euro-nazi' rightists in particular) treat Islam. What happened to this man is indeed unfair and I would not stand for it either. I don't know anybody who would.
As for Jihad on Buses, since when did I say that?
I bet by the time I've finished this, the topic will be closed...
Re: Muslim bus driver who wouldn't remove kufi gets his job back
format_quote Originally Posted by Fishman
My post was changed because of the 'do not debate with people of innovated beliefs' thing in your signature. I do not consider it being 'cunning' or deciving. It is just what happens when I get angry. I write a long post about why I am angry, and then I change it or not post it at all when I finish the post because I have cooled off or think that it was too harsh and impolite. You just happened to catch it before I decided 'on second thoughts that was too harsh' and changed it.
Spreading misinformation about Islam is insulting. But I (along with everybody else I know) am not a person who considers wearing a skullcap or turban to be spreading misinformation. I won't go into that because it is, as your signature says, debating with people of deviant beliefs.
As for drawing attention away from real injustice, I would disagree with that as well. Most of my posts that complain about things complain about how other Muslims act, e.g. mindless extremism, bad 'science', a general victim complex etc. This has to be the first time on this forum in ages when I complained about the way non-Muslims ('euro-nazi' rightists in particular) treat Islam. What happened to this man is indeed unfair and I would not stand for it either. I don't know anybody who would.
As for Jihad on Buses, since when did I say that?
I bet by the time I've finished this, the topic will be closed...
So you assume this guy was forbidden to wear his "cap" because he was Muslim? It doesn't sound like that was the case at all, or did I miss something?
"Imagination was given to man to compensate him for what he is not, and a sense of humor was provided to console him for what he is."
Re: Muslim bus driver who wouldn't remove kufi gets his job back
format_quote Originally Posted by Keltoi
So you assume this guy was forbidden to wear his "cap" because he was Muslim? It doesn't sound like that was the case at all, or did I miss something?
He was fired because he wore religious headgear, because they would not accept his word that it was because of religious reasons. It is the same as somebody being fired for wearing hijab or a Sikh turban. The skullcap is not compulsory, I know, but it is still undermining his freedom of religion.
Why isn't wearing hats allowed anyway? I mean, if it said 'use trams' on the front or something, or if it was some kind of gangsta hoody with a baseball cap underneath it I would understand, but anything else just seems a bit strange.
It is the same as somebody being fired for wearing hijab or a Sikh turban.
hijab: covering modesty thus obligatory
sikh turban part of sikh religion and oblgatory
skullcap may be part of Judaism but in no way it is Sunnah for Muslims as such it's removal does not equate to removig his hijab or woman's head scarf or a sikh's turban.
All this sorry affair has done is to re-inforce fear of and prejudice against any future applicant with a Muslim name!
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