by Christopher Paslay
After kindergartener Na’illa Robinson was abducted Monday from Bryant Elementary School, some have questioned the safety of adults picking children up from school wearing Muslim garb.
According to a Daily News column by Helen Ubinas, the recent kidnapping of five-year-old Na’illa Robinson has caused some citizens to question whether an adult woman showing up at school with her face covered to pick up a child is a legitimate safety concern.
Ubinas wrote:
You want to talk about the burqa and whether it should be banned—as France and Belgium have done—in the name of public safety or gender equality or integration? Bring it on.
Ubinas feels religious freedom supersedes safety. What do you think? Take the poll below:
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That is a difficult question and an even more difficult decision. It does fly in the face of one of our most sacred rights, freedom of religion. The idea of disallowing religious garb because of safety seems a bit foolish. I would look to an alternative way of ensuring the safety of our children. Perhaps the child should be picked up by a family member that can show their face.
a bigger issue, it seems to me, is the fact that the person got out of the school with the child in the first place. The district needs to reassess their security procedures and make changes as needed.