My Beard Battle: From Forced Silence to Precedent

Ten Years Later: From Forced Silence to Precedent — The Beard They Tried to Take, and the Voice They Couldn’t

Ten years ago, I stood inside a Colorado prison intake facility and was told to do something that violated my faith, my dignity, and my humanity: shave my beard.

It wasn’t about safety.

It wasn’t about policy applied equally.

It was about power — and the assumption that a man in custody has no voice, no rights, and no future.

This month, after a decade-long legal fight, that assumption was proven wrong. I reached a settlement with the State of Colorado for $245,000 — not just compensation for what was done to me, but recognition that what happened was unlawful. More importantly, it sets a precedent for others who may face similar violations of religious freedom and human dignity.

But this victory didn’t begin in a courtroom.

It began with a long chain of injustice — and a refusal to be erased.

The Road Back to Prison — and Back to Truth

My original incarceration stemmed from false accusations and a wrongful harassment conviction. Facing the brutal reality of pretrial confinement, I accepted a plea agreement for probation just to go home. Instead, I was sentenced to prison.

When I was eventually released on parole, the harassment didn’t stop — it escalated. My ex repeatedly contacted my parole officer claiming I was violating parole by threatening her.

 Fortunately, my parole officer investigated and uncovered the truth. Unbeknownst to her, he placed me into custody to verify her claims and scheduled an interview with her. She never showed, claiming I had approached and scared her off. Realizing now that she was the liar I was claiming she was,  my PO released me immediately.

Failing to dupe my PO the harassment widened, extending now to the entire parole office, including supervisors.

Then came a technical violation: a positive urinalysis allegedly indicating alcohol use. In reality, the results were caused by elevated ketone levels in my urine from fasting  Ramadan combined with my chronic kidney disease — facts supported by medical evidence.

At my violation hearing, the officer acknowledged my explanation was medically valid. Yet I was still violated and remanded to prison. The reason given was chilling: removing me from the community might stop the harassment coming from my ex.

So once again, I was sent back to prison not because I had done something wrong — but because of circumstances rooted in false allegations.

And it was during that remand that my religious rights were violated.

The Day They Tried to Strip My Faith

At intake, I was ordered to shave my beard — a core element of my Muslim faith. I objected respectfully and explained the religious significance.

It didn’t matter.

The officer threatened to put me in solitary confinement if I didn't shave.

Later I learned I wasn’t alone. That same officer in 2017 forced a Jewish man to shave his beard — another clear violation of religious freedom. That individual sued and won a settlement. The pattern was undeniable.

What happened to me wasn’t a misunderstanding. It was a repeat offense rooted in disregard for the religious rights of incarcerated people.

Ten Years of Fighting Back

The legal battle that followed lasted nearly a decade. Ten years of motions, setbacks, persistence, and faith. Ten years of refusing to let the system bury what happened behind prison walls.

And now, ten years later, justice has spoken — not only in financial compensation but in precedent.

My case stands at a moment when religious freedom behind bars is under national scrutiny. With cases like Damon Landor’s currently before the United States Supreme Court — and potentially moving in a troubling direction — this settlement sends a powerful message from Colorado:

Religious rights do not end at prison gates.

Human dignity is not conditional.

And incarcerated people can prevail when they fight back.

More Than a Settlement — A Signal

This victory isn’t just mine.

It’s for Muslim brothers forced to choose between faith and punishment.

It’s for Jewish prisoners who faced the same violations.

It’s for anyone whose religious expression has been treated as an inconvenience rather than a constitutional right.

It’s also for my faith community — proof that standing firm in belief, even under extreme pressure, matters.

And for those who have been falsely accused, wrongly punished, or silenced by systems that were supposed to protect them — it’s a reminder that the fight is long, but it is not hopeless.

Full Circle

The same chain of events that once pushed me into prison — false accusations, technical violations, and abuse of power — ultimately became the foundation for a precedent that will help others.

They tried to make me smaller.

They tried to erase my faith.

They tried to silence my voice.

Instead, they helped create a witness.

Ten years later, I stand not just as a survivor, but as proof that persistence can reshape policy, expose wrongdoing, and open doors for those coming behind us.

Justice delayed is still justice fought for.

And sometimes, the very system that tried to break you becomes the place where your victory is written into law.