When Muslim students took over a Colorado university computer lab for Islamic prayers, a woman, who was trying to study, objected to the learning space being used for a religious session. However, since she refused to go along with the prayer, she has now been placed under an investigation by campus officials.
In a campus computer lab at Metro State University of Denver, studious youths were suddenly disrupted from their work when a pair of Muslim men entered the room, unfurled prayer mats, and began audibly reciting the Maghrib, an Islamic prayer made just after sunset.
Typically, individuals are careful not to offend members of the religion of Islam, fearing accusations of bigotry, racism, and Islamophobia. However, for one young woman, concerns of a backlash from the internet simply didn’t outweigh the need to study.
According to a video uploaded to social media by one of the Muslim participants, the pair had begun the prayer when a young woman voiced her displeasure with the apparently unwelcome disruption. The unidentified woman allegedly tells the men to go pray “somewhere else” before responding to one of the men filming and criticizing her by flipping off the camera.
“So we’re praying Maghreb and this lady starts going off trying to say ‘DO THIS SOMEWHERE ELSE’ and then starts bumping music. So we confront after and she begins with ‘F your religion..F you..I don’t care about your prayers’ just belligerence. Omar comes to pray and she continues,” the man alleges.
The woman can be seen mouthing an expletive, before going back to her work on her laptop. As his companion continues praying, the man filming demands the woman’s name, to which she responds that it’s none of their business.
Oddly enough, one of the men admitted to routinely using the computer lab for religious sessions. However, he gave no response when asked why the pair chose the lab instead of opting to pray in the privacy of their homes or a religious center specifically designed for such activities.
“We come to this lab every M/W night to pray and never had an issue with anybody at all. They’re very respectful and we keep it as quiet as possible. But with her, she was immediately triggered by the sound of our Salat,” he wrote.
What would otherwise be considered a passive-aggressive exchange of words between a frustrated woman attempting to study and a pair of students misusing the computer lab for a house of prayer has since evolved into a serious investigation. According to The Denver Post, MSU Denver has confirmed that the young woman who objected to her studies being interrupted by the Islamic prayer is being investigated for a “verbal altercation” with the Muslim students.
The University announced that it is “looking into” the woman’s “potential affiliation” with the Auraria campus and possible misconduct. Contrarily, the university has expressed no comment on the use of its computer lab as a place for Islamic prayer.
“MSU Denver takes its commitment to diversity very seriously and places a high value on cultivating and sustaining a respectful and inclusive campus community,” the university said.
The organization Documenting Oppression Against Muslims (DOAM) immediately latched onto the case, purporting that it was the woman who “confronts” and “verbally abuses” the Muslim men. The group also claims that she “intimidates them by playing loud music,” despite the men’s own vocalization of their prayer.
It is unclear whether the university will address the issue of students utilizing a computer lab for religious purposes. So far, officials seem solely concerned with the “verbal” exchange, which appears to be cutting against the unidentified woman.
Most campuses provide faith centers or rooms specially designated for religious prayer and meditation. However, the school appears to be content with allowing students to transform study spaces into designated prayer halls while looking with suspicion at anyone who objects to their studies being disrupted.
Source: Tap Worthy Happenings
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