Flight Attendant Sues ExpressJet In Another Case Of Flying While Muslim

As a Muslim flight attendant sues ExpressJet for discrimination, the Michigan chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations is supporting her refusal to serve alcoholic beverages to passengers by reason of her faith. Forty-year-old flight attendant Charee Stanley filed her suit with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission on Tuesday, September 1, 2015.

Stanley is contesting the revocation of a reasonable religious accommodation granted her by the airlines two months ago. According to The Detroit News, the airline had Stanley ask her co-stewardesses on duty to handle the serving of alcoholic drinks. The setup ended on August 25 when the airline responded to a complaint by another attendant regarding Stanley. C.A.I.R. is protesting ExpressJet’s decision to put Stanley on administrative leave for 12 months, after which her position may be terminated.

Stanley has been with ExpressJet for three years, but her conversion to Islam two years ago impacted her ability to perform her duties fully. Only lately had she realized that her religion prohibited her from serving alcohol.

The Detroit News quoted a press release issued by Lena Masri, staff attorney for C.A.I.R.-Michigan.

“We have informed ExpressJet of its obligation under the law to reasonably accommodate Ms. Stanley’s religious accommodation request regarding service of alcohol. Instead, ExpressJet has deliberately chosen to violate Ms. Stanley’s constitutional rights.”

According to Fox News, the colleague who complained about Stanley pointed out that she was negligent in her duties as a flight attendant in her refusal to serve alcohol. The motion filed by Stanley’s co-worker against her also mentioned her headdress and her book with “foreign writing.”

An Islamic flight attendant who sues her employer, would put herself in the same category as other Muslims who have taken issue with an airline, tagged by the Los Angeles Times as “flying while Muslim.” Events involving Muslim characters and airplanes follow a recognizable pattern, the Times attests. Someone lodges a claim of anti-Muslim mistreatment, followed by Twitter messages that spark outrage, forcing an apology from the targeted airline.

The September 11, 2001 attack on New York’s twin towers by Islamic terrorists who claimed the lives of 2,977 victims, is kept fresh in the American consciousness by yearly remembrance. A moment of silence is observed in Washington and by media networks to honor the victims, their family members, survivors, rescue workers, and volunteers from that traumatic day. Its psychological impact continues to manifest itself in the American handling of Islamic issues.

On November 20, 2006, according to Wikipedia, six Islamic imams were removed from a U.S. Airways flight to Phoenix, Arizona, at the Minneapolis-Saint Paul International Airport because of their perceived suspicious behavior. The imams did not use their designated seats, sat in pairs throughout the cabin, and were reported by a fellow passenger who spoke Arabic, to have mentioned Osama bin Laden and condemned America for “killing Saddam.” In the aftermath of the incident, the imams’ supporters online called for a boycott of the airline.

On May 29, 2015, Tahera Ahmad, director of interfaith engagement at Northwestern University, objected to a flight attendant not giving her an unopened can of Diet Coke during a United Airlines flight from Chicago to Washington, D.C. According to the Los Angeles Times, the stewardess explained that an unopened can is considered a potential weapon on a plane. A man across the aisle called Ahmad a “Muslim” and told her to shut up. She retaliated by posting her experience on Facebook with the hashtag #IslamophobiaISREAL. The post went viral, resulting in calls for a boycott of United Airlines.

September 11 is fast approaching, and as in previous anniversaries, imagery will be rehashed on the towers of the World Trade Center being struck by jetliners. Past depictions have shown Arab jubilation at the event, and the iconic Palestinian middle-aged woman in a hijab ululating with glee at the news of Americans killed, a YouTube piece garnering millions of viewers. And fueling American anger.

As flight stewardess Stanley sues Expressjet for her job with religious accommodation allowing her hijab and religious book, the #ChareeStanley hashtag is already circulating on Twitter.

[Photo by Chris Hondros /Getty Images]