S.African bowler Wayne Parnell converts to Islam

South African fast bowler Wayne Parnell in a statement on Thursday announced his conversion to Islam from Christianity,Times of India reported on Friday.

He has also changed his named to Waleed after his conversion to Islam earlier in January this year.

Parnell confirmed in the statement that he has been studying about Islam and will celebrate his 22^nd birthday as a Muslim on Friday.

Parnell said:

“While I have not yet decided on an Islamic name I have considered the name Waleed which means Newborn Son, but for now my name remains Wayne Dillon Parnell. I will continue to respect the team’s endorsement of alcoholic beverages. I am playing cricket in Sussex and this is my immediate focus.”

The South African cricket team manager, a Muslim by faith, Mohamed Moosajee said that Parnell’s Muslim teammates – Hashim Amla and Imran Tahir – did not influence his decision to convert from Christianity.

Moosajee said:

“Wayne already decided a few months ago to follow Islam. The decision to convert was his own decision, but I know nothing of the name change.”

Parnell’s fellow players, reportedly said they believed that he is very serious about the conversion and had not ‘touched a drop of alcohol’ ever since he converted to Islam. His new name is Waleed.

He is the second Christian cricketer to have converted to Islam after Pakistan’s Yousuf Yohana (now Mohammad Yousuf) in 2006.

Lisa Valentine wins settlement: Douglasville courthouse screenings will now be adapted to accommodate religious head coverings

DOUGLASVILLE, Ga. — A Muslim woman who was arrested in 2008 after refusing to remove her hijab in a Douglasville courtroom has received a settlement from the city.

The settlement includes changes to the way people wearing religious head coverings are screened when they enter the courthouse, according to Azadeh Shahshahani with the American Civil Liberties Union of Georgia.

Lisa Valentine spent several hours in jail in December 2008 after declining to take off her hijab while accompanying her nephew to a traffic hearing in Douglasville Municipal Court. She sued the city in December 2010, saying her free speech rights were violated when she was asked to remove the head covering.

"We are glad that the city of Douglasville has acknowledged that the way that Ms. Valentine was treated was inexcusable and awful," Shahshahani said. "No one should feel singled out in a court of law simply for observing her faith."

According to Thursday's settlement, Douglasville has adopted a special policy that allows people wearing religious head coverings to be screened in a private area by an officer of the same gender.

"I am glad that Douglasville has agreed to formal policies to make sure this never happens to anyone else," Valentine said after her settlement hearing.

WXIA-TV, 6 October 2011

See also ACLU press release, 6 October 2011