14 DAY TRIAL // A muslim teen filing suit for wrongful termination against apparel giant Abercrombie & Fitch has given her first interview after being proved right by a federal judge.
18-year-old Hani Khan won the lawsuit after she was fired from one of the company stores in San Mateo, California in 2010.
The manager at the shopping mall location had told her to take off her head scarf while on the job, and she got fired for refusing to do so.
"She expressed concern about my hijab. [...] That's when I felt like it was not appropriate, what they were saying," Khan recalls.
As a Muslim, she covers her head and chest with the hijab as a sign of morality and modesty. Khan would only be allowed back to work if she agreed to take it off during work hours.
"They just don't feel like it fits in with their 'Look Policy,' which I feel is very unfair," she notes.
The "Look Policy" regulates employees' image and lays out guidelines for clothing and hair styling.
In 2006, CEO Mike Jeffries explained that the company prides itself with catering to a market base consisting of "cool, good-looking people." Their strategy is to project the same image via their sellers.
"We don't market to anyone other than that," he said, according to a report by ABC News.
In the Khan trial, the corporation cited a decrease in sales due to the girl's choice of headwear but their argument, paired with a lack of proof on the issue, did not convince a judge to dismiss the suit.
"Abercrombie & Fitch does not discriminate based on religion and we grant religious accommodations when reasonable," a spokesperson has stated after the suit.
"I really hope that they look into their policies and practices," she said, "and they're able to reflect some changes," Khan responds.