When his partner called us last week to tell us that Mr. Law was not receiving meals from the prison and was relying on potato chips and other commissary foods for suhoor and iftar, our first step was to inform the warden that the prison was required by the U.S. Constitution to provide a religious accommodation to Mr. Law. By denying Mr. Law his request for meals during non-daylight hours, Baskerville and the warden were forcing Mr. Law to choose between basic subsistence and observing his sincerely-held religious beliefs.
Our Legal Director, Naomi Tsu, directed the team as we started to deploy the other tools our small staff has honed: we consulted with other advocates, including CAIR, on similar efforts; Policy Counsel Sumayyah Waheed reached out to regional elected officials for their support and intervention on Mr. Law’s behalf, and in partnership with our friends at the ACLU of Virginia, we prepared to file an emergency lawsuit in federal court. Chris Godshall-Bennett, who came to Muslim Advocates on a one-year fellowship to work on prison conditions for Muslim prisoners (and who, thanks to your support, we have recently been able to hire as a full time staff member) worked around the clock to prepare the complaint so it would be ready to go if the prison did not comply. Early Monday morning, right after suhoor, one of our experienced litigators and an expert in Ramadan accommodations, Reem Subei, drove from her home to Baskerville to meet with Mr. Law in person.
On Monday, after days without a response from the Warden, we went to court. I commend the complaint to you. It lays out the Kafka-esque hoops Mr. Law tried to jump through all on his own and forcefully makes the case of why our work is so vital. Americans from every community rely on lawyers to vindicate their rights and American Muslims often turn to legal representation because they have been targeted or discriminated against *for being Muslim*.
Yesterday, less than 24 hours after we went to court, Baskerville Correctional Center reversed course and prison officials informed Mr. Law that he would receive an iftar meal.
Your donations enable us to pay our staffs’ salaries and therefore your donations made this possible. When Reem met with Mr. Law on Monday, he told her that when he’s released later this year, he wants to do the kind of work that MA does because people in jail are often forgotten by those outside and he was so reassured by our responsiveness. We are grateful to be able to use our expertise and experience in this way, and when we learn how it has affected our clients, we need to tell you, the donors, because that appreciation is due to you as well.
