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To: Lazarus_Long who wrote (7842)	6/8/2006 1:43:23 PM
From: Proud_Infidel	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 14758

Muslim group targets Jewish holidays [Baltimore] Towson Times ^ \| 6-8-06 \| Louis Llovio A Muslim group is demanding that the Baltimore County school system remove Jewish holidays from the 2006-07 school calendar. The demand comes after a nearly three-year battle between the Baltimore County Muslim Council and the school system over adding two Islamic holy days, Id al-Fitre and Id al-Adha, to the school calendar. Next school year's calendar, proposed May 10 and due to be voted on by the school board June 13, does not include the two Muslim holy days. But the calendar does list the Jewish holidays of Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, meaning schools are closed those days. Dr. Bash Pharoan, president of the Muslim council, said it is not fair for the county to recognize one religion while ignoring others. He said if the school board does not vote to allow the two Muslim holidays, then the Jewish holidays should be dropped. "This issue is about equality, about equity," he said. The board has the prerogative of changing the calendar to include the Muslim holidays, doing away with Jewish holidays or approving the calendar as submitted. Pharoan would not discuss what the Muslim council will do if the board approves the submitted calendar. But he said he would not rule out legal action. One Jewish leader strongly disagrees with Pharoan's portrayal of the issue. "This is an attempt to wage de-facto warfare between Muslims and Jews in Baltimore County," said Arthur Abramson, executive director of the Baltimore Jewish Council. "This has nothing to do with the best interests of the school district nor the students," he said, calling the attempt to do away with the Jewish holidays "religious discrimination." Abramson said the school system's decision to add the Jewish holidays was purely economic. The school system, he said, adopted the holidays largely because it was too costly to hire substitutes to fill in for observant Jewish teachers. A school system representative did not return phone calls, but according to the schools' Web site, substitute teacher pay starts at $59.66 and can go as high as $103.05 a day. Abramson said that when the schools have more Muslim teachers and students, the Muslim holidays will be added to the closings list. The calendar committee that drew up the 2006-07 calendar recommendations laid the ground work for just that contingency. The committee agreed to allow both Muslim students and teachers excused absences on their holy days. At the same time, the panel agreed to monitor the number of absences and make a determination if the days off were needed. Pharoan called that "racial profiling." He also accused the school system of refusing to turn over the data used to determine that Jewish holidays were needed. But Pharoan says the issue isn't about religion. This is "not about celebrating religious holidays," he said, "this is about equal treatment of all county tax-paying residents." Pharoan said his goal is not to rid Jewish students and teachers of their holidays. "I just want to be treated the same. It is only fair," he said. Pharoan said he would be satisfied if the board allowed one of the two Islamic holidays.