Gunpowder Chronicle posted on May 26, 2007 1:00 PM | Rating:
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Muslim leaders in Baltimore County have their burkhas in a twist because the Baltimore County School Board is following Maryland Law and not including Muslim Holidays in the 2008-2009 school calendar.
Boo hoo hoo...
Maryland law is VERY specific that schools can only close on Religious Holidays if they fall within certain date ranges OR there would be an excessive rate of absenteeism. This is why Baltimore County added certain Jewish holidays to the calendar a number of years ago-- the entire northwest part of the county was vacant on those days. Unfortunately for Muslims, their population is not great enough in Baltimore County to justify closing schools.
However, one of the great things about Baltimore County schools is that they will provide execused absences for students and professionals who need to be absent for religious reasons. In fact, until they added the Jewish holidays to the calendar, this was exactly how the matter was handled.
What this really amounts to is Muslim leaders trying to blow the trumpet of discrimination where the tune just doesn't match the music. No one is discriminating against Muslims here, and these repeated attempts to create these accusations out of whole cloth only cheapens actual claims, and makes Muslims in American seem non-serious in their engagement in public life.