New York to Pay USD 17.5 Million to Settle Suit After 2 Muslim Women Were Forced to Remove Hijabs for Mug Shots

According to the reports, New York City has agreed to pay USD 17.5 million to settle a lawsuit filed by two Muslim women who were forced to remove their head coverings to be photographed after they were arrested.

The class-action lawsuit was filed in 2018 by Jamilla Clark and Arwa Aziz, two Muslim women who said they felt shamed and exposed when they were forced to remove their hijabs after they were arrested, reported news agency PTI.

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“When they forced me to take off my hijab, I felt as if I were naked. I'm not sure if words can capture how exposed and violated I felt,” Clark said in a statement. “I'm so proud today to have played a part in getting justice for thousands of New Yorkers."

The lawsuit said police officers threatened to prosecute Clark, who was sobbing after being arrested for violating a bogus protective order filed by her abusive former husband, if she did not remove her head covering, The lawsuit said Aziz, who also had been arrested because of a bogus protective order, felt broken when her picture was taken where a dozen male police officers and more than 30 male inmates could see her.