Muslim Sues Jail Over First Amendment
JOIE CHEN, CNN ANCHOR: A very unusual fight over faith here. A religious battle in Ohio over one man's desire to pray behind bars. Now, he not a prisoner, Dawoud Kareem Muhammed. He is suing the state for one million dollars. We point out quickly here that he says the prison where he works as a guard violates his First Amendment rights by refusing to let him pray at work. His suit filed in federal court in Cleveland on Wednesday also says he was denied entrance to the prison seven times because he was wearing an Islamic skullcap. Joining us to talk about the case today is Dawoud Kareem Muhammad and his attorney Avery Friedman. We want to also say here to our viewers that we contacted the Grafton Correctional Institution that is named in the lawsuit, but officials declined to comment on this case publicly. Mr. Muhammad, could you explain what you were doing that got you in trouble at work?</s>DAWOUD KAREEM MUHAMMAD, MUSLIM PRISON GUARD: The problem is, Joie, that there is a -- I would say a -- a struggle jihad, a religious struggle between the Muslims and the state of Ohio, whereas due to a riot in '93 where it throws bad light on the Muslims. And this has been ongoing and...</s>CHEN: But the upshot of it is that you would like to carry out your prayers and they don't want to you to do it?</s>MUHAMMAD: Right. This is right.</s>CHEN: And you were doing it in a closet, as I understand it?</s>MUHAMMAD: Closet or store room. It was an area where they stored things. And, yes, when it was discovered that I was praying there then the locks were changed.</s>CHEN: Gentlemen, I want to get you some questions from our Webchat audience. Kimberly Kinnear was asking here, "Was he praying on his break or during the time that he should be working?" Mr. Friedman can you talk to us about that?</s>AVERY FRIEDMAN, ATTORNEY: I'm sorry, I didn't hear the question.</s>CHEN: Was he praying on his break or during the time that he should be working?</s>FRIEDMAN: Well, the prison provides for smoke breaks but they prohibit prayer breaks. If I'm understanding the question, I can't hear you quite well. The difficulty is that once they found out he was a practicing Muslim and because of their feelings toward Islam, they not only changed the locks on the closets where he prayed, but they also barred his entry when he was wearing a skullcap under his cap. Now, if you are Christian you may can wear a crucifix under your uniform, but if you are Muslim you are not permitted to wear the skullcap under your uniform.</s>CHEN: Another question, James P. Wicks asking, "Were you praying out loud for everyone to hear, Mr. Muhammad?"</s>MUHAMMAD: No, my prayers were done in seclusion and they were not said out loud, no.</s>CHEN: I don't want to be rude, can I ask how long, how much of the day you spend at the prayers? I know there are a number of them that a good Muslim is required to do a day. How much of your workday was spent doing this?</s>MUHAMMAD: I'm the rec officer at the institution. I shut down Rec. every day about 3:15. I have 15-20 minutes to get over to D-1 to help count. I am there by myself, so I make my Salat at that time. The third Salat that I make is during the evening when we close Rec. at 8:00, when I am there again by myself. So, it not in any way interferes with the institution.</s>CHEN: Mr. Friedman can you talk a little bit about the circumstance? Mr. Muhammad made mention of it earlier, that there had been previous concerns about Muslims inside this particular correctional facility, and his feeling that this might be contributing to why he has encountered this problem within his workplace. Is there sort of impression that Mr. Muhammad as a Muslim or a particular kind of Muslim, might therefore be some sort of troublemaker?</s>FRIEDMAN: In fact there is huge confusion in America between devout Muslims practicing Islam and black Muslims. Because of a prison riot Mr. Muhammad has suffered an anti-Islamic prejudice and as a consequence he has not been free to practice. That is guaranteed under the First Amendment, and in fact in this case, the United States government, the EEOC found the penitentiary guilty of violating civil rights laws, the Islamic Consulate of America put them on notice and they continue to violate the First Amendment and the Civil Rights</s>ACT. CHEN: Again we want to tell our viewers that we did ask the Grafton Correctional Institution to speak about the case, but officials have declined to do so. We want to thank Dawoud Kareem Muhammad, as well as attorney Avery Friedman for being on with us and taking your questions today. Thank you, gentlemen.