Woman says Denver arena guard told her to remove hijab

DENVER (AP) - A Muslim civil rights group is protesting after a Colorado arena security guard told a woman to remove her hijab before she could enter to see her 8-year-old daughter sing the national anthem with her school choir at a Denver Nuggets basketball game.

Gazella Bensreiti (ben-SRAY-tee) said Wednesday that the guard told her to “take that thing off of my head” at the Pepsi Center box office on Nov. 5.

Bensreiti said she explained the scarf was for religious purposes. She said the guard replied that she didn’t care.

After speaking with a supervisor, the guard ushered her inside.

The Council on American-Islamic Relations protested the incident.

Arena owner Kroenke Sports & Entertainment called the encounter a misunderstanding and said the guard didn’t recognize that Bensreiti was wearing a hijab.

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