In the first such case in the
"I want to make sure everyone across the boardis able to practice their religion freely in a democratic society," saidGinnnah Muhammad.
The 42-year-old Muslim was contesting a $2,750charge from a rental-car company to repair a vehicle that she said thieves hadbroken into.
Judge Paul Paruk in US District Court in
The woman, who runs an aromatherapy business insuburban
Attorney Nabih Ayad said his client unsuccessfullysought to get a different judge to hear her case and asked the judge to removehimself, a request he turned down.
She is now suing Judge Paruk on the ground that hisposition could affect those who will stand before him in the future.
"Thus, future harm is imminent," says thelawsuit.
It also cites a federal civil rights law in claimingthat the woman was denied access to the courts because of her religion.
Unconstitutional
The Muslim woman said the judge's decision todismiss her case was unconstitutional based on her First Amendment right topractice her religion.
"You should be able to be who you are as longas you're not a criminal or hurting other people," she insisted.
"The way I believe in Islam is that a woman isvery virtuous."
The woman stressed that she would have removed herveil before a female judge.
"We should be covered when we come out. Thisprotects me as well as other people. I believe that God wants me thatway."
Islam sees hijab as an obligatory code of dress, nota religious symbol displaying one's affiliations.
As for the face veil, the majority of Muslimscholars believe that a woman is not obliged to cover her face or hands.
Scholars, however, believe that it is up to women todecide whether to take on the face veil.
The niqab issue came to the fore in the West after
A Muslim teacher in northern
Muslims activists fear Straw's comments might be aprelude to a wide-scale European ban on niqab in state bodies like hijab.
The