Schools Accommodate Muslim Students

Education Reporter: Public universities across the nation are making unprecedented efforts to accommodate Muslim students, provoking round after round of debate over the role of religion in public life and the point at which accommodation becomes an unconstitutional establishment of religion. It is clearly constitutional to set aside a room on campus for students of any faith to use for prayer; but what about accommodations that meet the needs of only one religious group? The mere fact of a religious basis for a request does not mean universities should refuse the request. But unequal treatment of various religious groups does present a problem if it occurs at public institutions.

The Muslim Students Association (MSA), a national group, has formed a Muslim Accommodations Task Force (MATF) that now leads efforts to bring foot baths, halal food, and Muslim prayer rooms to schools everywhere. As of the summer of 2007, MSA announced that at least nine universities had set aside prayer rooms for Muslims only. At least 17 universities had installed footbaths for their Muslim students or were in the process of doing so. . . .

At Normandale Community College, a public institution in Bloomington, Minnesota . . . a meditation room on campus has become a Muslim-only prayer room with a number of features that make students of other faiths unwelcome. A sign posted at the entrance asks visitors to remove their shoes. Another sign lists the schedule for Islam's five daily prayers, and an arrow inside the room points in the direction of Mecca. Most noticeably, a chest-high barrier partitions the room to separate men and women during prayer. The college building crew erected this barrier, and college officials placed the signs asking students to enter barefoot — "basically a courtesy to Muslim students," says Dean of Student Affairs Ralph Anderson.

On the side of the barrier intended for women, there is a pile of shawls and head-coverings, or hijaab. A pamphlet entitled "Hijaab and Modesty" instructs women on proper attire and comportment according to Islam. Women should stay at home, according to the pamphlet, and their speech must not "be such that it is heard." The same pamphlet speaks disparagingly of Christians and Jews, "the enemies of Allah's religion. . . . Remember that you will never succeed while you follow these people." "For all practical purposes, this meditation room is essentially a Muslim prayer room," Normandale history professor Chuck Chalberg told Kersten. "Something this unprecedented goes beyond religious toleration." . . . [Read More]

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