Portland police force Muslim woman to remove her hijab

Portland, Oregon

Serine Abuelhawa, a leading Palestinian activist, was arrested at Portland’s Grand Floral Parade on June 8 for protesting the U.S.-backed Israeli genocide in Gaza. Abuelhawa said she was “taken into custody with seven other protesters for staging a die-in, bringing the parade to a stop in front of the military band.” When the police arrived the group continued to chant and refused to get up and disperse.

The cops seemed to single out Abuelhawa during the arrest. “They were very aggressive with me. Once they got me to my feet I was cooperating, but they very forcefully pushed me back down to cuff me. Three officers held my arms so tight I was left with bruises.”

At Multnomah County Jail, Abuelhawa was separated from the other protesters after refusing to take off hijab and have a man pat her down. I told them, “I’m a Muslim woman, I can’t remove my hijab in public especially since there are men in the room.” She was escorted to a jail cell by two female officers who took off my hijab and checked my hair.

Instead of returning the hijab, the women took it out of the jail and left her there for four hours. “Three male cops returned to fingerprint me and take a mugshot of me without my hijab. Then 4 or 5 men escorted me to a solitary cell and left me for another 3 hours,” Abuelhawa said. 

Aya Beydoun, an attorney for the Council on American-Islamic Relations, suggests that Abuelhawa would have a strong case if she chooses to sue. Beydoun has worked on over 12 cases involving police forcing Muslim women to remove their hijabs. She said it’s illegal as well as deeply unsettling, offensive and culturally disrespectful.

After speaking about her ordeal, Abuelhawa said, “I remind myself everyday that my people in Gaza are going through so much worse. I don’t have the option to be a victim.” 

There have been dozens of national cases like Abuelhawa’s. In 2017, a Muslim woman from Long Beach, California, won a $85,000 settlement against cops who forcibly removed her hijab while in custody. (tinyurl.com/5r86uds4)

On Jan. 25, Sophia Johnston won her lawsuit against police in Rutherford County, Tennessee, who forced her to remove a hijab for a mug shot. The settlement was for $100,000, and police were ordered to destroy the mug shots.  (tinyurl.com/y3ute2ys)

In April, New York City was forced to pay a $17.5 million settlement from 2018 for violating the rights of two Muslim women who said they felt shame and trauma when police forced them to remove their hijabs for mug shots.  (tinyurl.com/d7yrhdur)

Three women in Dallas are the latest to file lawsuits for failure to protect religious liberty during their booking process on Jan.  8. (tinyurl.com/5n89nym7)

While in jail Abuelhawa said she “was not given water, food or a phone call. Over seven hours later they let me out of the cell. They then gave me a pork sandwich while I had to wait another 90 minutes until they released me later in the evening.”