US: Muslim Woman Sues Sheriff’s Office after Being Forced to Remove Hijab

By Staff, Agencies

A Muslim woman in the US state of Tennessee has filed a lawsuit against the local sheriff's office after being forced to remove her hijab for a mugshot.

Sophia Johnston was taken to Rutherford County Jail earlier this month after being pulled over for driving a vehicle with a suspended license.

There, she was told to remove her hijab. Johnston told local news outlet WSMV4 that she did not want to remove her head covering for religious reasons, but deputies told her that if she didn’t, she would be jailed until she complied.

“I was confused. I felt like I was in an unknown place. I was scared, I felt very naked because as a Muslim woman, our hijab is our protection,” Johnston told the news outlet.

The lawsuit states that the sheriff's office broke state law regarding religious freedom. Johnston has said only the men in her family have seen her without her head covering.

“Once I unwrap my scarf, they all come out and just slowly walk past me, and I'm just trying so hard to not cry, not to break down because I can't show these people that they broke me,” she said.

Johnston is the latest Muslim woman to sue a police department in the US over the forced removal of their hijab during detention.

Being forced to remove would be a violation of their civic and religious rights, the lawsuit contends.