Sikh sues Disney for discrimination

Little did Disney know that turning down a job application from a musician could lead to a class action lawsuit. But that is exactly what happened.

The Sikh American Legal Defense and Education Fund, the oldest and largest Sikh American civil rights and advocacy organisation in the United States, in collaboration with Matthew Sarelson of Sarelson, PA, has filed a class action religious discrimination lawsuit against Walt Disney World Company on behalf of Sukhbir Channa, 24, and the Sikh American community.

Channa, a practicing Sikh American, applied for a job with Disney in 2006 but was not hired and was told that he did not have the 'Disney look' -- a negative reference to his religiously-mandated dastaar (Sikh turban), the SALDEF said in a press release. The lawsuit seeks financial damages of $ 1 million and a court order barring Disney from ever discriminating against prospective Sikh employees, the release added.

'Disney's position is fundamentally un-American because it forces Sikhs and also observant Jews and Muslims to choose between their faith and their career,' SALDEF chairman Manjit Singh said in a statement. 'It is also hypocritical for Disney to make millions of dollars using and vilifying cartoon characters that wear turbans and simultaneously reject the right of an American to wear a turban in accordance with his faith,' the statement added.

A Disney spokesperson has been quoted in the media as saying that the company is examining the lawsuit.