A Muslim girl who had been made to remove her hijab prior to entering Denver’s Pepsi Center is calling on arena management train its security team and to change its policies.
Gazella Bensreiti, who lives in Aurora, has been asked to eliminate the head cover before attending to the Nov. 5 NBA game including the Denver Nuggets and the Miami Heat, stated Gadeir Abbas, a senior litigation attorney for the Council on American-Islamic Relations. Her daughter’s school choir had been invited to sing the National Anthem
Abbas and other CAIR representatives are joining Bensreiti in calling for changes in the Pepsi Center. They intend to hold a news conference Wednesday to discuss the episode.
“It’s unfortunately all too common for Muslim girls to be harassed, excluded or discriminated against due to the hijabs,” Abbas explained.
A Pepsi Center worker at will phone allegedly told Bensreiti to “consider that thing off” or be refused entrance CAIR said in a news release. Bensreiti indicated she be carried to a private area so a woman could inspect underneath the religious head cover.
“She had been refused and subjected to public humiliation before employees, pupils and other parents, even until her daughter became distraught wouldn’t be permitted to see her perform,” the news release stated.
Becca Villanueva, a spokeswoman for Kroenke Sports & Entertainment, stated she wouldn’t go over the particulars of this episode.
Kroenke owns the Pepsi Center and the Nuggets. The company contracts with Argus, a private company, to run security checkpoints Villanueva stated. But she wouldn’t say if the will phone ticket window needed Argus security or Pepsi Center employees .
“We have achieved into the guest and asked to meet in person,” Villanueva said in an emailed statement. “Pepsi Center prides itself in developing a diverse and inclusive environment for all our employees. But we strive to be better and realize there is often room for improvement. ”
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