Douglasville police officers and a judge to attend diversity training

Douglas County police officers and a judge will take a cultural diversity class after a Muslin woman was sent to jail for refusing to remove her head scarf.

Last week, Judge Keith Rollins sent a Muslim woman to jail after she refused to remove her head scarf, or hijab, before entering a Douglasville courtroom. The woman, Lisa Valentine, was then escorted to jail and had her mug shot taken - without her hijab. But she was released hours later after the police department’s senior staff investigated.

Deputy Chief Gary Sparks of the Douglasville Police Department says everyone at the department will now attend a training class on diversity.

"We're aware of the changing in our community, so we want our officers to be knowledgeable of different aspects and in dealing with the different personnel that's living in our community."

Sparks says Judge Rollins will also attend the four hour class.

News of the incident spread across the country, and about 50 people demonstrated outside of the courthouse Friday. They called for Rollins to step down.

Muslim woman arrested for not taking off headscarf

A woman was arrested Tuesday for contempt of court in west Georgia after she refused to take off her hajib, the headscarf worn by Muslim women.

Chris Womack with the Douglasville Police Department says 40-year-old Lisa Valentine, who goes by her Islamic name Miedah, was ordered jailed for 10 days by Municipal Court Judge Keith Rollins. She violated a court policy that prohibits people from wearing anything on their head.

Valentine's husband, Omar Hall, said she was released from jail Tuesday evening. He called the judge's actions unconstitutional and humiliating.

The judge could not be reached for comment.

Last year, a Muslim woman in Valdosta made headlines when she was ordered to remove her hajib in Municipal Court. Officials cited homeland security reasons for forcing her to do so.

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Information from: The Atlanta Journal-Constitution,
http://www.ajc.com

(AP)

His Highness the Aga Khan visits Georgia

At the same time the Pope is visiting America, so too is another spiritual leader. Today, His Highness the Aga Khan arrived in Atlanta.The Aga Khan is spiritual leader to more than 15-million Ismaili Shia Muslims worldwide. More than 100-thousand Ismaili live in the U-S, including 20-thousand here in Georgia. More than three dozen supporters were on hand to greet the Aga Khan, as his plane touched down at Charlie Brown Field outside of Atlanta. He was greeted officially by Governor Perdue's Chief of Protocol. On Friday the Aga Khan will have lunch with the Governor. The trip is part of the Aga Khan’s Jubilee Celebration, commemorating 50 years leading the world’s second largest Shia community.

Scottdale mosque fire consumes a building

DeKalb County fire investigators are trying to determine what caused a fire that destroyed a building at a mosque in Scottdale. The call came in at about 10:15 p.m. the fire at the Jaffari Center yesterday.

DeKalb County Fire Department spokesman Captain Eric Jackson says the blaze was in a building behind the main center. He says 25 to 30 people were in the Center's sanctuary participating in a prayer service. No injuries were reported.

Leaders meet over Muslim incident

Today members of a national Muslim group met with city leaders in Valdosta to address a controversial incident involving a Muslim woman.

The Washington-based Council on American-Islamic Relations says Valdosta violated Aniisa Karim’s civil rights when an officer banned her from entering a court building last month because she was wearing a head scarf. Karim says she was denied entry to due “homeland security”concerns.

Last week Valdosta city officials said the court officer acted properly, but apologized for offending Karim. The CAIR representatives said today’s meeting yielded no resolution but there was a spirit of cooperation.

Valdosta court bars Muslim woman wearing headscarf

Officials in Valdosta who last week refused to admit a Muslim woman to a local court, say there were justified because the woman refused to remove her headscarf. Aniisa Karim says she went to court to contest an outstanding parking ticket. Sheriff's deputies, however, refused to admit Karim to court, citing homeland security concerns and because they say wearing the traditional headscarf would be disrespectful to the judge. A spokesperson for the city of Valdosta said court officers acted properly but did offer apologies if Karim was offended. Since Karim's story was made public, anti-Muslim postings to an Internet blog suggest she go home. Karim however, is African American and says she been wearing her headscarf since she was a child. Valdosta City officials say they'll review their court admittance policy this coming week.

Islamic group cries foul in Valdosta

A national Islamic civil rights group claims a court in Valdosta violated the civil rights of a Muslim woman.

The woman said last week that she was not allowed to enter a Valdosta municipal courtroom for wearing a traditional Islamic headscarf. She alleges that an officer cited homeland security reasons, in denying her entry, and says the officer told her that it would show disrespect to the judge.

CAIR, a Islamic advocacy group says the move violated the 1964 Civil Rights Act, which guarantees access to public facilities based on religious beliefs or practices.

They are calling on Georgia's attorney general to take what they term, “appropriate action,” in the incident.

The State attorney-general's office did not have an official comment on the report, as of press time.

Valdosta woman denied courtroom access

A national Islamic civil rights group has sent a letter to Georgia's attorney general asking for "appropriate action" to be taken on behalf of a Valdosta woman. Last week, a Muslim woman says she was denied access to a municipal courtroom for wearing a traditional Islamic scarf. She said an officer told her she was denied entrance for homeland security reasons, and that it would show disrespect to the judge. No comment yet from Attorney General Thurbert Baker's office, or the Valdosta court.