New York amusement park’s headgear ban sparks scuffle

Fifteen people were arrested after a scuffle at an amusement park in Westchester County, New York on Tuesday, where a group of Muslims were told that women could not wear head coverings on certain rides.

The Muslim American Society of New York had organized a trip for around 3,000 people to Playland Park in Rye, New York to celebrate the Muslim holiday of Id al-Fitr, which marks the end of Ramadan. Playland's no headgear rule for certain rides was one of the safety measures adopted by the park in response to accidents that killed three people there between 2004 and 2007.

News reports gave various explanations for what led to the incident on Tuesday.

The New York Times spoke with Ola Salem, 17, of Coney Island, Brooklyn, who said she asked a park employee if she could join her younger sister on a ride.

"They said no because my of my 'headgear,'" Salem said. "I said,'It’s not my headgear, it’s my religion.'"

After a number of people in the group were informed of the rule, officials told the Times, the park offered them a refund, and several proceeded to the main entrance to get back the $20 they had paid per person.

Then, the Parks Department said, about 20 members of the Muslim American group started fighting among themselves. Peter Tartaglia, the deputy commissioner of the department, said there was pushing and shoving, so some park rangers intervened. One ranger sustained an injured shoulder; another injured a knee.

The New York Daily News reported a different version of events. Dena Meawad, 18, told the Daily News that a woman named Entisai Ali began arguing with police officers over the headgear rule.

"The cops started getting loud with her and she started getting loud, too. They pushed her on the ground and arrested her," Meawad said.

Meawad said her cousin and brother then stepped in and were also arrested.

"We requested a refund and all of a sudden an argument became a riot," Ali's sister, Ayman Alrabah, told the paper. "Cops came. They were hitting my brother, my dad. My husband was on the floor and they were handcuffing him."

Tartaglia, the deputy commissioner of the Parks Department, said that the Muslim American Society of New York was warned in advance about the headgear rule.

"Part of our rules and regulations, which we painstakingly told them over and over again, is that certain rides you cannot wear any sort of headgear," Tartaglia said. "It's a safety issue for us on rides, it could become a projectile."

Two of the people arrested face felony assault charges. According to the Times, all of the arrested were released on Tuesday