(WASHINGTON, DC, 9/14/2023) – The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), the nation’s largest Muslim civil liberties and advocacy organization, today called on the Virginia Department of Corrections (VADOC) to make simple adjustments to a policy that earlier this year forced Muslims in their care to choose between observing their faith or enduring borderline starvation.
SEE: CAIR Letter to VADOC Director Chadwick Dotson
https://www.cair.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/VADOCletter.pdf
Earlier this year, Green Rock Correctional Center officials declined to grant a Muslim incarceree’s reasonable request for a religious accommodation following his embrace of the Islamic faith. According to legal filings, Alexander Crichlow converted to Islam in January. Ramadan, Islam’s annual month of fasting and religious reflection, occurred in March. Given his conversion, Crichlow asked to be added to the Ramadan Accommodations List.
SEE: CAIR Sues Virginia Department of Corrections Over Denial of Ramadan Accommodations
Rather than provide Crichlow – and reportedly approximately 20 other Muslims who had not signed up for the list before November 18, 2022 -with timely meals, prison officials declined. This left these people of faith to choose between religious observance or borderline starvation when adhering to Ramadan without proper meals from VADOC. Providing Crichlow exactly what VADOC was already providing to dozens of other Muslims seems like a VADOC-values driven solution to this very simple problem.
Prison officials pointed to a statewide policy—Chief of Corrections Operations Memorandum 086-2022—that established the November 18, 2022, deadline for Muslims at Green Rock to request that their name be added to the Ramadan Accommodations List.
This deadline was a considerable period of five months prior to the onset of Ramadan in 2023.
“The Virginia Department of Corrections lists safety and support among its core values on its website. Policies should recognize real world circumstances, such as a conversion, rather than enforce rules that are detrimental to the spiritual lives of those in VADOC’s care,” said CAIR Research and Advocacy Director Corey Saylor. “This simple fix to a policy that requires incarcerees to provide five months of notice to observe a pillar of their faith seems in line with the values of safety and support.”
CAIR offers an educational toolkit, called “A Correctional Institution’s Guide to Islamic Religious Practices,” to help correctional officers and administrators gain a better understanding of Islam and Muslims.
SEE: A Correctional Institution’s Guide to Islamic Religious Practices
Washington, D.C., based CAIR defends the rights of incarcerated American Muslims in cases throughout the country.
CAIR’s mission is to protect civil rights, enhance understanding of Islam, promote justice, and empower American Muslims.
La misión de CAIR es proteger las libertades civiles, mejorar la comprensión del Islam, promover la justicia, y empoderar a los musulmanes en los Estados Unidos.
Become a Fan of CAIR on Facebook
http://www.facebook.com/CAIRNational
Subscribe to CAIR’s Email List
https://action.cair.com/a/newsletters
Subscribe to CAIR’s Twitter Feed
http://twitter.com/cairnational
Subscribe to CAIR’s YouTube Channel
Follow CAIR on Instagram
https://www.instagram.com/cair_national/
Donate to CAIR
https://action.cair.com/a/donate
Do you like reading CAIR press releases and taking part in our action alerts? You can help contribute to CAIR’s work of defending civil rights and empowering American Muslims across the country by making a one-time contribution or becoming a monthly donor. Supporters like you make CAIR’s advocacy work possible and defeating Islamophobia an achievable goal. Click here to donate to CAIR.
If you would like to join CAIR’s media list, please sign up here: https://action.cair.com/a/newsletters — For more information, email: [email protected], CC [email protected]
END
CONTACT: CAIR National Research and Advocacy Director Corey Saylor, 202-384-8857, [email protected]; CAIR National Deputy Director Edward Ahmed Mitchell, 404-285-9530, [email protected]; CAIR Government Affairs Director Robert McCaw, 202-742-6448, [email protected]; CAIR National Communications Director Ibrahim Hooper, 202-744-7726, [email protected], CAIR National Communications Manager Ismail Allison, 202-770-6280, [email protected]