Non-Muslim University Students Asked to Observe Muslim rules in Common Area

[JuanDenver]

Heres a new one.....and it also includes some more examples.....

Some public schools and universities are granting Muslim requests for prayer times, prayer rooms and ritual foot baths, prompting a debate on whether Islam is being given preferential treatment over other religions.

The University of Michigan at Dearborn is planning to build foot baths for Muslim students who wash their feet before prayer. An elementary school in San Diego created an extra recess period for Muslim pupils to pray.

At George Mason University in Fairfax, Va., Muslim students using a "meditation space" laid out Muslim prayer rugs and separated men and women in accordance with their Islamic beliefs.

Critics see a double standard and an organized attempt to push public conformance with Islamic law.

"What (school officials) are doing ? is to give Muslim students religious benefits that they do not give any other religion right now," says Richard Thompson, president and chief counsel at the Thomas More Law Center, an advocacy group for Christians.

Advocates say the accommodations are legal.

"The whole issue is to provide for a religious foundation for those who are observant while respecting separation of church and state," says Salam Al-Marayati, executive director of the Muslim Public Affairs Council, based in Los Angeles. Many schools accommodate the Christian and Jewish sabbaths and allow Jewish students to not take tests on religious holidays, he says.

Barry Lynn, of Americans United for the Separation of Church and State, says however that the law is murky on these expressions of faith. And the American Civil Liberties Union says overt religious symbols like crucifixes are not legal, but whether Muslim foot baths and prayer rugs fall into that category is not clear.

"That's a difficult one, and it's right on the edge," says Jeremy Gunn, director of the ACLU program on freedom of religion and belief in Washington, D.C.

At the forefront of the movement is the Muslim Students' Association, which has formed a Muslim Accommodations Task Force to push for foot baths and prayer rooms. At least 17 universities have foot baths built or under construction, including Boston University, George Washington University and Temple University, and at least nine universities have prayer rooms for "Muslim students only," including Stanford, Emory and the University of Virginia, according to the MSA's website. The association did not return calls seeking comment.

Zuhdi Jasser, a Muslim and chairman of the American Islamic Forum for Democracy, which promotes separation of mosque and state, says he is concerned about the accommodations. "Unusual accommodations for one faith at the cost of everybody else doesn't fall on the side of pluralism," he said.

At George Mason University, non-Muslim students were asked to observe Muslim rules in the prayer area, such as keeping men on one side and women on the other and removing their shoes, according to Broadside, the school newspaper. Alissa Karton, assistant to the vice president for student life, said the article prompted the school to order students to roll up prayer rugs when not in use and move the dividers.

The University of Michigan agreed to install foot baths after talks with the MSA, said Terry Gallagher, director of public relations at the campus. Some Muslims ritually wash their feet before praying five times a day.

Daniel Pipes, founder of the Middle East Forum, a conservative think tank, sees the requests as part of a movement to force the public to acquiesce to Islamic law.

"The goal of Islamists is the application of Islamic law," Pipes says.

In the San Diego case, a substitute teacher at Carver Elementary School alleged that teachers were indoctrinating students into Islam. The San Diego Unified School District determined that a teacher's aide was wrong to lead Muslim students in prayer. Carver still has a special recess to allow 100 Muslim students to pray.

The ACLU, which has often sued schools for permitting prayer, says it is waiting to see what kind of policy the school settles on before deciding whether to sue. It says promoting prayers is unconstitutional.

"If you start carving out time in the school day that you would not do but for the need to let students pray, then it begins to look like what you're trying to do is to assist religion," says David Blair-Loy, legal director for the ACLU in San Diego.

Thompson says such conflicts are bound to proliferate. He and other Christians, he says, are preparing to ask for equal consideration such as a Christian prayer recess.

"What you're going to see out there is more of these kinds of cases as the Muslim community tests how far it can go in the public school system," he says. "If this can happen for Muslims, it can happen for Christians and other religions."

http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/...-schools_N.htm

[MonsterG8r]

Following Islamic rules and allowing illeagals......Goodbye America, it was nice knowin' ya!!!

[jmonty]

why can't they wash their feet in a ****ing sinK?

[skinnycalves]

and people complain about creationism being taught in school

[buddhastalin]

even though i would deny the request, it's not like a muslim can go to their local mosque to meet their religious needs, whereas there is usually a christian church on ever corner. maybe there needs to be more islamic universities in the u.s. i'm an atheist but attended a jesuit university. 2 of my required classes involved religion which i found silly. no big deal in my opinion as long as people can still get along on campus.

[SYRIANKID]

Everyone should be allowed to use the sinks and get the same time off if they request.

[Gadsden]

I live close to GMU....this is so stupid.


wouldn't want to offend anyone or "violate" their 1st Amendment though!!!

[NuggzTheNinja]

Originally Posted by jmonty

why can't they wash their feet in a ****ing sinK?

You want them washing their nasty ass feet in your sink?

[JibJab]

Islam, like a lot of other religions has a lot of issues revolving around orthopraxy (things they have to do) allowing for that is only respectful. Christianity is almost entirely based in orthodoxy (statements of belief) which means there just isn't anything to allow for comparable to providing prayer times/ prayer mats etc for the moslem students.

[Molester]

Right. In the US there was a push to banish religion from all schools. Except, it seems, when Islam is the religion.

Why the hell is it that Islamic students get more prayer time, prayer spaces and facilities to help them pray in Western schools, when if you were to go to some fanatical Islamic state; i.e. Iran, Syria, Iraq - and request time for prayers to the Christian God, you'd get shot or hanged for being an infidel?

[Evolution_Z]

This is the America that I know. God Bless America

They are Americans and have the right to practice their religion in THEIR country (USA). America is made of not only christians or jews. We have a large muslim population that have EQUAL rights.

If you dont like having your fellow citizens enjoy equal rights, then go seek another country to live in.

[JackieBoy18]

Originally Posted by Evolution_Z

This is the America that I know. God Bless America

They are Americans and have the right to practice their religion in THEIR country (USA). America is made of not only christians or jews. We have a large muslim population that have EQUAL rights.

Not when its on my dime they dont. Where are all these ****ty foot baths that they want to build going to come from? Taxes.

What if I want a big Cross built in the middle of the campus green.

Will it happen? Highly doubt it.

[buddhastalin]

Originally Posted by JackieBoy18

Not when its on my dime they dont. Where are all these ****ty foot baths that they want to build going to come from? Taxes.

What if I want a big Cross built in the middle of the campus green.

Will it happen? Highly doubt it.

uh, actually, my dime appears to have gone to the st. robert bellarmine chapel which was built 10 years or so ago which is located on the east side of the fairfax campus. and it probably cost more than a prayer room and foot bath. oh yeah, and it has a big cross on it. stfu?

[AdonisSMU]

Originally Posted by Evolution_Z

This is the America that I know. God Bless America

They are Americans and have the right to practice their religion in THEIR country (USA). America is made of not only christians or jews. We have a large muslim population that have EQUAL rights.

If you dont like having your fellow citizens enjoy equal rights, then go seek another country to live in.

Schools are supposed to stay out of the business of religion. If the Muslims can't practice their religion with what is already there then they need to make other arrangements. Why should I have to go out of my way to respect a religion I don't believe in? It's fine when someone who practices their religion isn't affecting other people but since it is in this case.....its not okay.

[Huse]

There's seperation of church and state, but no seperation of mosque and state. Schweeet

[JibJab]

My university provides space for all the various religious groups on campus to meet and pray.
I don't understand how someone can have a problem with this but I suspect you don't understand the point of a secular state.
It is not to go against religion but rather to avoid favouring one religion over another.
These schools have clearly provided what moslems need to practice their religion and there is no counterclaim of them denying christians the things that they need to practise theirs.

[Huse]

Originally Posted by JibJab

My university provides space for all the various religious groups on campus to meet and pray.
I don't understand how someone can have a problem with this but I suspect you don't understand the point of a secular state.
It is not to go against religion but rather to avoid favouring one religion over another.
These schools have clearly provided what moslems need to practice their religion and there is no counterclaim of them denying christians the things that they need to practise theirs.

I need to ride a slide every 3 hours after sunrise. This is according to my religious creed and if my school doesnt provide it, they're absolutely hateful of my religion! Also they have to provide me a slide room and allow me to go whenever I want, too bad it's in the middle of class, they better fix their schedule then

[sup_builder2]

I think a secular state or organization should not provide ANY RELIGION any special services. Basically, the non-Muslim students are paying to create a place for Muslims to worship or wash their feet. This is wrong in so many ways.
Besides, what if every single religion starts asking for special treatment?

[jmonty]

Originally Posted by NuggzTheNinja

You want them washing their nasty ass feet in your sink?

can't be too much worse that washing poo off of hands. it isn't like i would shave or brush my teeth there. i'm just sayin' they shouldn't need special treatment.

[sup_builder2]

Originally Posted by jmonty

can't be too much worse that washing poo off of hands. it isn't like i would shave or brush my teeth there. i'm just sayin' they shouldn't need special treatment.

You know we clean it with toilet papers before washing our hands so...no poo.

[NuggzTheNinja]

Originally Posted by jmonty

can't be too much worse that washing poo off of hands. it isn't like i would shave or brush my teeth there. i'm just sayin' they shouldn't need special treatment.

Just another reason to "let 'em go" for sanitary reasons, lest they give ya the Saudi Southpaw. *vomit*

[jmonty]

they don't still use the left hand for poo do they??

[NuggzTheNinja]

Originally Posted by jmonty

they don't still use the left hand for poo do they??

I guess that depends entirely on where they're from, but I don't want to follow one into the bathroom to find out.

[SYRIANKID]

Originally Posted by jmonty

they don't still use the left hand for poo do they??

Muslims don't touch urine or feces with their left hand directly. The left hand is used to hold a jug of water/water hose and toilet paper for cleaning one's self after using the bathroom.

[Dave22reborn]

Originally Posted by SYRIANKID

Muslims don't touch urine or feces with their left hand directly. The left hand is used to hold a jug of water/water hose and toilet paper for cleaning one's self after using the bathroom.

Water hose?????

[jmonty]

Originally Posted by SYRIANKID

Muslims don't touch urine or feces with their left hand directly. The left hand is used to hold a jug of water/water hose and toilet paper for cleaning one's self after using the bathroom.

i thought it was more of an arab tradition? (as opposed to islamic)

[sup_builder2]

Originally Posted by SYRIANKID

Muslims don't touch urine or feces with their left hand directly. The left hand is used to hold a jug of water/water hose and toilet paper for cleaning one's self after using the bathroom.

Huh? I thought you used your handed. It would be hard to clean by just using a hose or jug of water unless it has tremendous amount of pressure.

[NuggzTheNinja]

Originally Posted by sup_builder2

Huh? I thought you used your handed. It would be hard to clean by just using a hose or jug of water unless it has tremendous amount of pressure.

Something makes me think that SK doesn't wipe his ass with a power washer.