Know Your Rights Educational Campaign
During Ramadan, we also launched an educational campaign to help the Muslim community be aware of our rights related to religious accommodations at school and work spaces, such as for prayers, fasting, and/or time off for Eid. Our Know Your Rights campaign distributed valuable information about legal rights to students and employees via info sheets accompanied by template letters. Our expert legal team was also available on hand for questions or if requests made to employers or administrators were denied.
Muslim Advocates Intervention Grants Religious Accommodations at Virginia Prison
Muslim Advocate attorneys also helped a Muslim man imprisoned in Virginia receive meals for Suhoor before his fasts and Iftar when breaking fast. Until we intervened, Virginia state prison officials at Baskerville Correctional Center had denied Dwayne Law, Jr. the ability to join other incarcerated muslims who were receiving meals before sunrise and after sunset. As a result, Mr. Law has spent nearly all of his Ramadan eating only what he can purchase from the commissary at night. The team at Muslim Advocates alongside the ACLU of Virginia filed an emergency complaint and immediately after, a Muslim Advocates attorney drove to Baskerville to see Mr. Law, the prison reversed course. While it is a shame that Mr. Law was unable to participate in the majority of Ramadan meals with fellow imprisoned Muslims, we are relieved that he was able to join in for proper pre-dawn and post-fast meals during the last few days of Ramadan and finally exercise his constitutional rights to worship.
Muslim Advocates is grateful to our many supporters who’ve made these efforts possible. Thank you for your generosity this Ramadan and for your support throughout the year!
