By Mark Rosenbaum, Chief Counsel
Five times a day, Princess Jasmine escapes the pressures of the royal palace to walk through the city streets under the cover of a modest headscarf.
Or at least that's what happens in Aladdin: A Musical Spectacular, the live show that performs five times every day in front of hundreds in Disney's California Adventure theme park in Anaheim. Aladdin's broad humor and characters are geared toward young children, but everybody enjoys the show.
When real-life Disney employee Imane Boudlal asked to wear a hijab, the headscarf worn by observant Muslim women, during her hostessing shift at a California Adventure restaurant, Disney told her no.
Imane, a U.S. citizen born in Morocco, had endured anti-Muslim and anti-Arab harassment since she started as a hostess at Storytellers Café in 2008. She was repeatedly taunted as a "terrorist," a "camel," "bombmaker," and "Kunta Kinte," the slave from Alex Haley's "Roots". (One of Imane's attorneys, Anne Richardson of Hadsell Stormer, called it the most egregious case of of discrimination and harassment that she's seen in her 22- year career.) When she reported these attacks to her Disney managers, they told her that she had to put up with them.
When she decided to start wearing a hijab full time, coinciding with the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, Disney sent her home without pay. Even though Disney showcases women in headscarfs every day, in the It's a Small World ride and elsewhere, Disney managers told Imane that wearing a hijab would make some customers uncomfortable and negatively affect their experiences at the cafe. Imane offered to wear a simple hijab with the Disney logo, or a hijab the same color and material as her work uniform, but her Disney manager gave her an ultimatum: either give up her position as hostess by working at the rear of the restaurant, or cover up her hijab with a ridiculous, wildly ostentatious hat worn by no other employee at the cafe.
When Imane explained that both alternatives demeaned her religion and she could not accept the alternatives demanded, Disney stopped scheduling her shifts.
Disney claims to prides itself on the diversity and tolerance of its organization. In fact, a "Spirit of Tolerance" plaque hangs in an exhibit on Disneyland's Main Street. This principle of tolerance for all religious beliefs is so integral to our American way of life that Congress extended its reach to hold all private workplaces and employers accountable to precisely the same constitutional standard as we hold all of our governmental institutions. Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 prohibits private workplaces from being environments where any religion may be disparaged or treated unfavorably. To that end, Imane filed a lawsuit against the Walt Disney Corporation.
For all intents and purposes, she was fired for her religious beliefs. And it's clear that Imane was targeted by Disney employees because she is a Muslim.
Imane no longer works for Disney, or wants to. She lives in Anaheim and finds herself driving far out of her way to avoid Storytellers Cafe. And every night, the boom of Disney's fireworks show reminds Imane of her mistreatment. At her press conference yesterday, Imane was asked why she's pursuing the suit. She said, simply, that "I don't want to see anyone go through what I've been through."
In America, no one should have to.

At 10:30 this morning, the American Civil Liberties Union of Southern California and the law offices of Hadsell Stormer Richardson & Renick are scheduled to announce "a lawsuit against a major media and entertainment company on behalf of a Muslim former employee, fired for wearing the hijab headscarf at work."

But the identity of the players has already been leaked: the Walt Disney Co. and Imane Boudlal, a former Grand Californian hotel restaurant hostess who was first told to remove her hijab and, when she refused, to wear a hat over it.
Boudlal, who is not identified in an announcement embargoed until the press conference begins in downtown Los Angeles, "faced increasing levels of anti-Arab and anti-Muslim harassment" during her two years on the job, "culminating with her dismissal in 2010 when she began wearing the hijab," according to the ACLU.
The way Boudlal preferred to look on the job and an alternative proposed by Disney management was released at the time by the worker's labor union:
Here is some of our previous coverage of the case:
Disneyland Prohibits Muslim Worker from Wearing Hijab on the Job, Suit Claims
Muslim Woman and Her Support Team Allege Disneycrimination in Hijab Flap, Suggest Top Brass Ride "It's a Small World"
Imane Boudlal, Muslim Fighting Disney for Right to Wear Hijab: "We Should Just Accept Each Other and Respect Each Other"
Imane Boudlal, Disney Worker Who Sparked Hijab Flap, Rejects New Company Compromise
Imane Boudlal, Battling Disney Over Head Scarf, Suspended Without Pay?
http://blogs.ocweekly.com/navelgazing/2012/08/imane_boudlal_who_clashed_with.php

KTLA: A Muslim woman who worked as a hostess at a Disneyland restaurant is suing Disney, claiming the company wouldn't let her appear in front of guests while wearing her headscarf.

It's a dispute that's been going on for about two years, but now the American Civil Liberties Union is getting involved.
It all started in August 2010 when Imane Boudlal, a Morocco-born U.S. citizen, worked at the Storyteller[s] Cafe in Disney's Grand California[n] Hotel.
Boudlal wears a headscarf, or hijab, but Disney said the garment didn't comply with its strict dress code.
Disney offered up a compromise hat for her to wear, but Boudlal said it made her look like a joke.
"The hat makes a joke of my religion and draws even more attention to me," Boudlal told KTLA at the time.
"It's unacceptable. They don't want me to look Muslim. They just don't want the head covering to look like a hijab."
Boudlal had worked at the resort for two and a half years, but only realized she could wear her hijab to work after studying for her U.S. citizenship exam.
She became a citizen in June 2010, and decided to challenge the Disney dress code a couple months later, on August 15.
When she wore her headscarf to work, Boudlal says she was told to take it off, work in the back where customers couldn't see her or go home.
She chose to go home, but reported to work for the next two days and was told the same thing.
Boudlal subsequently filed a complaint against Disney with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission..
In a prepared statement, Disney spokeswoman Suzi Brown said the company "values diversity and has a long-standing policy against discrimination of any kind."
"Typically, somebody in an on-stage position like hers wouldn't wear something like that, that's not part of the costume," Brown said.
"We were trying to accommodate her with a backstage position that would allow her to work. We gave her a couple of different options and she chose not to take those."
But Boudlal maintains that wearing a headscarf is her constitutional right.
"My scarf doesn't do anything to harm Disney or the guests," she told KTLA.
"The Constitution tells me I can be Muslim, and I can wear the head scarf. Who is Disney to tell me I cannot?"
http://www.ktla.com/news/landing/ktla-disney-headscarf,0,2277906.story