Nadia Eweida

A Christian British Airways employee, Nadia Eweida, was asked to stop wearing a cross. She is suing in the European Court of Human Rights. Air line employees wear uniforms. It is part of the job. Airlines spend millions of dollars designing the uniforms to create a particular effect. Gaudy beads, leg warmers, a cross, a political button, a find from an Indian bazaar, a nun’s habit, a Habib… all spoil that effect. The cross is particularly bad because its trying to push a point of view not shared by the airline or its customers. It makes customers uncomfortable, particularly non-Christians. It may even be perceived as threatening, as if to say, only Christians are welcome here or I strongly disapprove of drinking alcohol even though I am peddling it under duress. If the passenger is Muslim, it would say I approve of the genocide of your people in the crusades. If the passenger is gay, it says I would like to kill you if I could get away with it. If she wants to proselytize, let her do in on her own time, or go work in a Christian supply store. She has no right to push her delusions on the airline’s captive customers. I would see no objection to her wearing religious fetishes under her clothing. She claims she is being fired for being Christian. Nonsense. She was fired for refusing to stop modifying her uniform to give the false impression British Airways promotes Christianity. She would have been similarly fired for refusing to remove a political button, a football team pin, an ask me about Amway tag or a decorative pendant made by her niece. The whole point of her cross is to advertise Jesus. In principle, it is no different from advertising Amway. Wearing the uniform as given is part of her employment contract.

~ Roedy (1948-02-04 age:70)