A Muslim-American woman says she was unfairly singled out at a Kent credit union for wearing a hood, and that a supervisor threatened to call 911 if she didn’t take it off.
Jamela Mohamed said she went to the Kent branch of Sound Credit Union Friday to make a car payment - something she’s done several times before.
On this day, she was wearing a hooded sweater and had the hood on.
“On Friday, Muslims observe Jummah. And since Ramadan is coming up, I make sure I wear my scarf,” she said.
The teller asked Mohamed to take off her hood. A sign inside the credit union says hats, hoods and sunglasses are not allowed.
Mohamed said she was following the policy, so she went to her car to grab her headscarf, or hijab. She went back in with her scarf, while still wearing her hood.
While she was waiting, Mohamed says she took some video of the sign and of two male customers wearing baseball caps because they were being helped without any issues.
“Why am I witnessing a man being serviced with a hat on and I’m being told to take off my hood?” asked Mohamed.
Mohamed talked to a teller again. Then, a credit union supervisor approached Mohamed.
Mohamed took cellphone video showing the branch supervisor counting to three and then saying she was going to call 911.
“I didn’t even get to utter a word,” Mohamed said. “She started screaming, ‘One, two, three! I’m going to call 911!’”
That’s right after the supervisor told Mohamed to remove her hood.
“You have to take your hood off!” said the woman in the video.
Mohamed’s attorney Thaddeus Martin said her problem was not with the rule, but with the selective treatment and how it was applied.
“She is seen as a threat and she’s actually treated as a threat,” said Martin.
Sound Credit Union has posted on its Facebook page saying it did not handle the situation well, is apologizing, and will make sure it never happens again.
It also stated, “It is clear our training needs to include more empathy and sensitivity to all cultures, because as a credit union, we believe in equal treatment of all people.”
Mohamed believes that workplaces and schools should have diversity and cultural sensitivity training.
She says the issue isn’t about whether she was wearing a hood, but about people being treated equally.