Gym and a Prayer
Thursday, December 7, 2006 at 12:24PM DEARBORN – Fitness USA, a gym chain, is investigating an alleged civil rights violation involving a local Muslim woman who says her afternoon prayer was interrupted by a fellow patron, and that her complaint to management about the situation was rejected.
“The manager told me, ‘You have to respect her (the patron), but she does not have to respect your God,’ ” said Wardeh Sultan of Dearborn. “I’ve had my membership for seven or eight years, and I’ve never had a problem with praying there. “I told that manager, ‘I can’t believe you said that’ ” Sultan said. “Honestly, I feel humiliated and I feel ashamed, right now, to go back to Fitness USA.”
The American Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee, have lodged a formal complaint with Fitness USA on behalf of Sultan, saying the recent spate of conflicts results from a growing intolerance of Islam and a growing restiveness among Muslims that their rights to speak freely and worship are increasingly at risk.
So how DO you balance all these rights, including religious ones? Isnt this all a bit overblown? Cant the dispute be settled like adults? After all if the accusations are true then why did the gym change its dress code to accommodate muslims? The woman who interrupted her has as much right to speak as (presumably) as she has to pray?
Im also pretty certain (though Ill check at lunchtime) that muslims have a sort of ‘round up prayer’ if you will- that allows them to make up for prayers when they find themselves unable to conduct them normally. If that is the case is it fair to insist on praying in such an inconvenient location?! Or is that exhibiting a level of intolerance she accuses evryone else of?
The whole rights issue is a mess. I would suggest a gym might not be a suitable place for prayer. With the AAAD now involved, does this smack of grandstanding to you?
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Reader Comments (13)
If they did it while I was praying in a Church I think I would.
If Muslims have to pray at a particular time then I'm sure most of us would not object. But most of us don't object to cartoons either and when your faith is seen as political then public displays are likely to attract public comment.
Excellent point Henry
I had to complain as I found it hard to enter and exit the toilet.
No wonder people find it hard to get along.
OK so seriously whats the deal here - & im still trying to find that thing about the round up prayer they can do fwiw
Fair enough if they want to do it at home or in the mosque, but must we humour them at the gym or (bizarrely) in the public toilet?