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10/21/18, 8(00 PMMuslims Describe Being Confronted at Pool: ‘Weʼre Portrayed as Troublemakersʼ - The New York Times

Page 1 of 4https://www.nytimes.com/2018/07/26/us/muslim-children-pool-wilmington.html

U.S. | Muslims Describe Being Confronted at Pool: ‘We’re Portrayed as Troublemakers’

By Melissa Gomez

July 26, 2018

Tahsiyn Ismaa’eel was determined to get her campers a full day in the pool.

Ms. Ismaa’eel, the director of Darul Amaanah Academy in Wilmington, Del., can see

the closest city pool, Foster Brown, from the school’s back door. It’s where she has

taken children attending the school’s summer Arabic literacy program for the past

three years, usually three times a week.

But this summer was different. Since late June, the group was harassed on at least

six occasions because of the children’s attire or barred from entering the pool

entirely, Ms. Ismaa’eel said. Staff members had begun citing an unposted rule

prohibiting cotton clothing in the pool, she said, seemingly targeting her campers, a

majority of whom are observant Muslims who dress modestly and wore long shorts

or tights, T-shirts and headscarves to go swimming.

On July 16, she tried one more time. The group arrived and was told the pool was at

capacity, Ms. Ismaa’eel said. She and the children waited until a family left and they

were allowed to enter, but the facility closed shortly after, and everyone was forced to

leave.

She now takes her students to another pool, Eden Park, 10 minutes away, where their

attire hasn’t been questioned.

“There’s no point in going back,” Ms. Ismaa’eel said in an interview. “We’re portrayed

as troublemakers when in fact, there was never a policy in writing.”

Muslims Describe Being Confronted at Pool: ‘We’re Portrayed as Troublemakers’

U.S.

10/21/18, 8(00 PMMuslims Describe Being Confronted at Pool: ‘Weʼre Portrayed as Troublemakersʼ - The New York Times

Page 2 of 4https://www.nytimes.com/2018/07/26/us/muslim-children-pool-wilmington.html

[Racism at American swimming pools isn’t new: Here’s a look at the long history.]

She said she was focusing on keeping her campers busy so they don’t dwell on what

happened. “They definitely feel like there’s something wrong with them being

Muslim,” she said.

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Parents of some of the children say they’ve struggled to explain to them why their

clothes were being questioned.

“My children literally sat on the side of the pool each time and cried,” said Mia Miller,

whose two daughters, ages 5 and 6, have special needs and were at the pool during

some of the encounters.

Muslim Advocates, a national advocacy group, sent the city a cease-and-desist letter

last week on the school’s behalf, saying that state and federal anti-discrimination

laws had been violated and calling for an investigation.

Mayor Mike Purzycki of Wilmington has apologized to the children. John Rago, the

mayor’s deputy chief of staff, confirmed that the rules and regulations posted at city

pools only prohibit cutoff jeans and that there is no mention of cotton clothing. (He

also said the temporary pool closure on July 16 was because of a medical emergency

involving a lifeguard.)

Mr. Rago said the city was taking the allegations seriously and investigating. He

added that the city’s Muslim community has been invited to help review and update

the pool policies, and that staff members will receive training “so there is nothing left

to individual interpretation.”

10/21/18, 8(00 PMMuslims Describe Being Confronted at Pool: ‘Weʼre Portrayed as Troublemakersʼ - The New York Times

Page 3 of 4https://www.nytimes.com/2018/07/26/us/muslim-children-pool-wilmington.html

For the remainder of the city’s pool season, which runs until Aug. 18, there will be a

“very liberal policy in place regarding proper swimwear without restrictions on the

types of fabrics worn,” Mr. Rago said.

The pool manager at Foster Brown who confronted Ms. Ismaa’eel has been

reassigned to administrative duties, Mr. Rago said.

Ms. Ismaa’eel said she and more than a dozen campers arrived at the pool around 3

p.m. on June 25, the first day city pools were open. The pool staff began to ask her

and her daughter when they planned to leave, and they became uncomfortable, she

said.

The pool manager, Glenda Pinkett, confronted her and told her the pool had a “no

cotton” policy and the children could no longer swim there. Ms. Pinkett also called

some of the children derogatory names, according to the cease-and-desist letter.

They left within the hour, Ms. Ismaa’eel said.

“It’s never been an issue,” said Ms. Ismaa’eel, who grew up in Wilmington and swam

in T-shirts and shorts as a child.

Ms. Pinkett could not be reached for comment. She previously told The News

Journal of Wilmington that she believed cotton clothes could clog pool filters, but

admitted there was no written policy. “Nobody was discriminated,” she told the

publication. “As I did with all our patrons, we asked them to not wear cotton.”

In a statement this month, Mayor Purzycki said the city used poor judgment in

asking the children to leave because of their clothing. “We also referred to vaguely

worded pool policies to assess and then justify our poor judgment, and that was also

wrong,” he said.

Nadirah Salaam said she was angry when she found out her 10-year-old daughter

had been part of the group whose clothes were questioned.

10/21/18, 8(00 PMMuslims Describe Being Confronted at Pool: ‘Weʼre Portrayed as Troublemakersʼ - The New York Times

Page 4 of 4https://www.nytimes.com/2018/07/26/us/muslim-children-pool-wilmington.html

“I told her if someone ever treats you like that ever again, don’t be mean to them,

just explain to them why you’re covered,” she said. “Because they might not know.”

Follow Melissa Gomez on Twitter: @MelissaGomez004.