Policeman Sued His Force Over Epic Beard

By Alex in Crime & Law, Fashion on Mar 10, 2009 at 1:13 am

Police officer Javid Iqbal, 38, of Bedforshire, England, doesn’t just have any beard. No sir – he has what can truly called an "epic beard."

Daily Mail (yes, I know how you guys feel about this newspaper, but they always come up with the most interesting stories …) has more on Javid’s travail and lawsuit involving said epic beard:

A Muslim police officer claims he was forced out of his job by colleagues who made fun of his beard and called him a ‘f***ing Paki’.

PC Javid Iqbal, 38, said white officers openly discussed in front of him how they were ‘ better’ than their ethnic-minority colleagues. [...]

Mr Iqbal says he was sacked after fellow-officers in Luton launched a ‘smear and witch-hunt campaign’ during which they lodged a string of complaints about his performance.

He is taking the Bedfordshire force to an employment tribunal claiming he is the victim of racial and religious discrimination and unfair dismissal.

Link – via reddit


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  1. Miranda Vink
    Mar 10th, 2009 at 3:34 am

    Just typical. If the same thing had happened to a Scottish vegatarian greek orthodox christian policeman with the same silly beard most people would recognize that this guy would never fit in with his co-workers. If you stand out like that, you’ll get a few jokes. But because he’s a Pakistani muslim his co-workers are at fault because they’re racists and anti-muslim bigots.

  2. Robolasse
    Mar 10th, 2009 at 3:38 am

    Miranda >> When not even fellow police officers respect the police uniform, why should anyone else?

  3. Polx
    Mar 10th, 2009 at 5:28 am

    As soon as I read “Daily Mail” I set perceptions to LIES.

    They are notorious for not fact checking,especially if it dovetails with their world view.

    Then I read that the Police were calling a Pakistani fellow officer a “Fucking P*aki”, and I thought….no that actually does sound like most coppers I’ve met.

    It’s a terrible thing when the rozzers manage to live down to your expectations.

    It is a recorded fact that police from any ethnic minority are many times more likely to be brought up on disciplinary/performance related issues than the white/anglo counterparts.

    Racist? “The Filth”?….no, say it ain’t so!

  4. Doug Dorn
    Mar 10th, 2009 at 5:49 am

    I know firemen can’t have beards because of the oxygen masks they need to use.

    How can a cop gas a peaceful demonstration, or an unarmed old lady if they have that big beard. It just makes sense that the other cops wouldn’t approve.

    Hell, some handcuffed kid might be able to grab that beard while you are shooting him in the back.

    I really think the cops have a point here.

  5. Azuro
    Mar 10th, 2009 at 7:38 am

    he should expect to be mocked, it looks silly. he’s living in the real world after all.. if it was my religion to wear a giant plastic penis on my head whould i expect not to be mocked?
    i think this story has been fabricated anyway, but of course there are racists out there so who knows.

  6. Prakesh
    Mar 10th, 2009 at 9:50 am

    The operative question here is, “Is he really a ‘f***ing Paki’”?

  7. Frau
    Mar 10th, 2009 at 10:03 am

    It’s the beard’s fault. It looks comical.
    It would be difficult for me to take someone with that, seriously.

  8. Johnny Cat
    Mar 10th, 2009 at 11:55 am

    I’d be making jokes, too. Not racist or hurtful, more along the lines of jug-band and moonshine jokes.

  9. Mr. Binky
    Mar 10th, 2009 at 3:03 pm

    That beard seriously looks shopped.

  10. Largefromage
    Mar 10th, 2009 at 3:16 pm

    Turn his head upside down and he could have a great career guarding Buckingham Palace.

  11. Rick Brown
    Mar 10th, 2009 at 4:05 pm

    I’m just curious about that early 1970′s LED watch he’s wearing in the pic…shopped and poorly, I might add…me doth thinks so…

  12. Brim
    Mar 10th, 2009 at 5:10 pm

    That beard is hilarious. It looks like a black ferret is sleeping on his jaw, or a nest of social weaver birds.

    The trouble with the whole thing is that if a muslim gets sacked even for a good reason, he can always cry out that it was because of racism or islamophobia. They know that those two words make us westies humble and apologetic. The “racist-card” always works: no one wants to question it or doubt it, because they fear that they would be accused of racism.

  13. Frau
    Mar 10th, 2009 at 6:09 pm

    @ Rick Brown – that LED watch looks like he won it in one of the Tokyo Flash Treasure Hunts here.

  14. DOJ
    Mar 10th, 2009 at 10:28 pm

    Hey, it’s Wooly Willy!

  15. Mouserz
    Mar 11th, 2009 at 9:22 am

    If I were him, I would start a religion based on that magnificent beard of his.

  16. Rick Brown
    Mar 15th, 2009 at 4:47 pm

    Yes Frau, that could be very well possible but I still prefer watches that tell time instead of mental gymnastics to impress drunker people at the bar. Besides, the crop below the chin is too high up on the lip. Man creatures abhorr it that close and it catches all weird sort of food debris..not really impressing the date that much…

  17. Jit Monty
    Dec 10th, 2009 at 1:02 am

    I read a lot of ignorant bable from a lot of people that have no courage themselves. I am not a Muslim or member of any religion. However, I am a man, and men grow beards, simple. Now, if having one interferes with your job performance, it would be wise to shave.
    If it does not, you should be able to have one. For those of you who criticize this dude for his beard; well, I feel bad for you. Why? Because you have been hoodwinked by all of the fashion magazines, tv shows and so on to accept a force fed image of what a man should look like to be acceptable in the eyes of fools.
    If you choose to shave on your own accord, because of preference, great…all power to you; it’s manly to have your convictions. For those of you who look down upon facial hair, you might as well chop your penis off when mainstream thought tells you that that is what men do in the real world.

    Beards are a symbol of manhood, maturity, ferility, and social courage.

    Men grow beards you lady men.

  18. Greg Hunt
    Dec 29th, 2009 at 1:58 pm

    It is true that firemen and some emergency service workers can not have their beards due to the actions of some gases that may be traped in the beard, and the difficulty of obtaining an adaquite seal against the face with a gas mask. However, those who make fun of vegatarianism and beards need to read their bibiles. They also need to resurch the history of Judaism and Chrisianity. Roman Catholism seems to be the odd man out on the subject, and that only for the last thousand years. World war two also had a profound effect on the normal appearance of western men. Ignorance is ever the font of predjudice.
    Vegatarianism is part of the personal piety of many christians, Christian monks are in part Vegatarian or varrities thereof, the book of Levitcus forbids the eating of blood recomending scaled fish, beards are actualy part of holy tradition up held by the bible and numerous laws and comments by the church fathers. A beard is the normal part of a man, just as the finger nails are. As a Paramedic I purposely do not train for areas where work in gas enviroments are neccary. St. James wrote in James 4:17;
    “Therefore to him that knoweth to do good, and doeth it not,to him it is sin”. In the book of Leviticus it says “You will not round the edges of your beard”.
    Respectfuly, Gregory


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