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Civil Rights Org, Muslim Advocates, Settles Pool Discrimination Lawsuit

NNPA NEWSWIRE — “Every child should be able to have fun in a public pool without having to worry about facing prejudice.” . said Tahsiyn Ismaa’eel, founding director of the Darul Amaanah Academy summer youth camp

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By Stacy M. Brown, NNPA Newswire Correspondent
@StacyBrownMedia

The national civil rights organization, Muslim Advocates, and its co-counsel announced a settlement of a lawsuit against the city of Wilmington, Delaware. The lawsuit alleged that Muslim children were repeatedly harassed at city pools last year because of clothing worn for religious reasons.

According to court documents, the city will revise its dress code policies for city-operated aquatic facilities to ensure access for all. The new policy will expressly state that the dress code accommodates clothing worn for religious reasons or financial hardship.

The settlement comes following a lawsuit brought by Wilmington-based Muslim Youth Center, Darul Amaanah Academy, and certain families associated with the center.

Some of the children attending Darul Amaanah’s summer camp, consistent with their religious beliefs, wear headscarves, t-shirts or leggings while in public.

Despite wearing such clothing at city pools for years without incident, pool staff harassed the children this past summer and repeatedly denied them access to the pool simply because of their religious beliefs, according to Darul Amaanah.

Despite numerous complaints, including a cease and desist letter from Muslim Advocates and an acknowledgement from the mayor’s office that the city used “poor judgment” and “should be held accountable,” the city failed to take meaningful action, forcing the plaintiffs to file this lawsuit in August 2018, according to attorneys for the center.

“I was born and raised in Wilmington, which is why it broke my heart to see our children face this kind of discrimination and humiliation from the city,” said Tahsiyn Ismaa’eel, founding director of the Darul Amaanah Academy summer youth camp.

“Every child should be able to have fun in a public pool without having to worry about facing prejudice.”

As part of the settlement, the city will provide additional training to employees of city-operated aquatic facilities and prominently display the new dress code policy at all city pools.

The city will also extend the length of the 2019 pool season through Labor Day and provide $50,000 in compensation to the plaintiffs, according to the settlement.

While the city didn’t admit any wrongdoing, Mayor Mike Purzycki and City Parks and Recreation Director Kevin Kelley both said Wilmington is committed to “ensuring the fair and equal treatment of all residents.”

“Both parties agreed that today’s announced settlement helps to ensure that all residents of Wilmington are able to enjoy Wilmington’s aquatic facilities,” the mayor and parks director said in a joint statement.

Muslim Advocates attorneys said they were pleased with the outcome.

“Darul Amaanah Academy’s staff and families showed remarkable courage by publicly standing up for themselves and for the broader Wilmington community,” said Juvaria Khan, the senior staff attorney at Muslim Advocates.

“Everybody — especially young children — should be allowed to use the pool without fearing that they will be discriminated against because of what they believe or the way they look. This situation should have never happened, and this settlement agreement helps ensure that it will never happen again.”

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Oakland Post: Week of June 4 – 10, 2025

The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of June 4-10, 2025

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Remembering George Floyd

BLACKPRESSUSA NEWSWIRE — Minnesota State Attorney General Keith Ellison acknowledges that the Floyd case five years ago involved a situation in which due process was denied, and five years later, the president is currently dismissing “due process. “The Minnesota Atty General also says, “Trump is trying to attack constitutional rule, attacking congressional authority and judicial decision-making.” George Floyd was an African American man killed by police who knocked on his neck and on his back, preventing him from breathing.

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Mural showing the portrait of George Floyd in Mauerpark in Berlin. To the left of the portrait the lettering "I can't Breathe" was added, on the right side the three hashtags #GeorgeFloyd, #Icantbreathe and #Sayhisname. The mural was completed by Eme Street Art (facebook name) / Eme Free Thinker (signature) on 29 May 2020. (Wikimedia Commons)
Mural showing the portrait of George Floyd in Mauerpark in Berlin. To the left of the portrait the lettering "I can't Breathe" was added, on the right side the three hashtags #GeorgeFloyd, #Icantbreathe and #Sayhisname. The mural was completed by Eme Street Art (facebook name) / Eme Free Thinker (signature) on 29 May 2020. (Wikimedia Commons)

By April Ryan
BlackPressUSA Newswire

“The president’s been very clear he has no intentions of pardoning Derek Chauvin, and it’s not a request that we’re looking at,” confirms a senior staffer at the Trump White House. That White House response results from public hope, including from a close Trump ally, Georgia Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene. The timing of Greene’s hopes coincides with the Justice Department’s recent decision to end oversight of local police accused of abuse. It also falls on the fifth anniversary of the police-involved death of George Floyd on May 25th. The death sparked national and worldwide outrage and became a transitional moment politically and culturally, although the outcry for laws on police accountability failed.

The death forced then-Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden to focus on deadly police force and accountability. His efforts while president to pass the George Floyd Justice in policing act failed. The death of George Floyd also put a spotlight on the Black community, forcing then-candidate Biden to choose a Black woman running mate. Kamala Harris ultimately became vice president of the United States alongside Joe Biden. Minnesota State Attorney General Keith Ellison prosecuted the cases against the officers involved in the death of Floyd. He remembers,” Trump was in office when George Floyd was killed, and I would blame Trump for creating a negative environment for police-community relations. Remember, it was him who said when the looting starts, the shooting starts, it was him who got rid of all the consent decrees that were in place by the Obama administration.”

In 2025, Police-involved civilian deaths are up by “about 100 to about 11 hundred,” according to Ellison. Ellison acknowledges that the Floyd case five years ago involved a situation in which due process was denied, and five years later, the president is currently dismissing “due process. “The Minnesota Atty General also says, “Trump is trying to attack constitutional rule, attacking congressional authority and judicial decision-making.” George Floyd was an African-American man killed by police who knocked on his neck and on his back, preventing him from breathing. During those minutes on the ground, Floyd cried out for his late mother several times. Police subdued Floyd for an alleged counterfeit $20 bill.

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Oakland Post: Week of May 28 – June 30, 2025

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