Muslim Jail Guard Wins Religious Accommodation in Harlem Prison

Paving the Way for More Super Max Jihadists?

In the midst of FBI and Homeland Security concerns that radical Muslims are spreading extremist Islamic beliefs in the U.S. prison system, The North County Gazette reports that in a federal court settlement released Wednesday, New York prison officials have agreed to allow a Muslim correction officer wear a kufi while on duty at a Harlem correctional facility. The kufi is the traditional Islmaic skullcap worn by Muslim men and is not part of the dress code for the Harlem prison guards.

The settlement, which federal District Court judge Harold Baer approved last Friday, marks an end to the New York State Department of Correctional Services' policy of refusing to grant any religious accommodations to state correction officers.

This settlement for religious accommodation comes in the wake of growing concerns by the FBI and Homeland Security on the increasing recruitment of US prison inmates by Muslim extremists.

USA Today reported in 2006 that the FBI and Homeland Security are urging prison officials to do more extensive background checks on workers and volunteers who meet with inmates. And members of Congress are looking at possible reforms in prison security as a way to combat the spread of extremist Islamic beliefs.

Chief among the concerns is that radical Muslim clerics could have access to prisoners and coerce them with terrorist literature.

"It's a concern because we know that violent extremist groups will target people in prisons," said Donald Van Duyn, the FBI's counterterrorism director. "We're working to improve monitoring, improve training and increase awareness."

The NYCLU website, the New York State affiliate of the ACLU, provides background on the lawsuit--