Justice Dept.: school should have permitted teacher to make Mecca pilgrimage

The United States Department of Justice has announced that a suburban Chicago school district must pay $75,000 to settle a religious discrimination lawsuit filed by a Muslim teacher.

On September 11, 2008, Safoorah Khan requested three weeks of unpaid leave time to make a hajj, or pilgrimage to Mecca. “It’s required once in our lifetime at the earliest opportunity you can get,” she said. After her request was denied, she resigned and made the pilgrimage.

“I’m glad that we settled and I hope this does set a precedent,” she added. “I hope they realize that hajj means a lot to Muslims and there will be more and more people taking the trip. I hope this helps people and their employers to accommodate Muslims and their requests.”

In addition to paying Khan $75,000, the school district must provide training on religious accommodations to supervisors and board members.