This is the First Muslim US Air Force JAG Officer to wear Hijab!

A Female Muslim can finally have no hindrances in achieving her dream with a Hijab! Yes, it’s true and quite surprising for the general public given the high rise of Islamophobia; especially in the USA!

The Lebanese-American Lt. Maysaa Ouza is making history as the first lawyer to wear headscarf as part of the Air Force’s Judge Advocate General’s Corps program. Ouza told NBC documentary that:

“At officer training, I was the first Muslim that most of my colleagues had ever met.”

She further said:

“Islam and the Air Force have more similarities than people think…Discipline, Modesty, Justice, Valor; So, in a way, the hijab and the uniform both represent the same thing.”

Lt. Ouza was recently granted a religious accommodation allowing her to wear a hijab during training and in her role as chief of legal advice at Scott Air Force Base in Illinois. As a graduate from the University of Toledo College of Law, the Muslim woman knew that her hijab may impact her application into the Air Force.

After being accepted into the highly-competitive JAG Corps program, she was told she could only request a religious accommodation after committing years of her life to military service.

Air Force officials said she would have to remove her hijab and begin basic training without the head covering. The American Civil Liberties Union and her attorneys sent a letter to the Air Force on behalf of Ouza urging officials to reconsider the policy. The Air Force then reversed their decision and allowed Ouza to join JAG Corps with the religious accommodation.

“The idea that people are just going to do away with their prejudices, that is not a realistic expectation.”

Air Force Capt. Rafael D. Lantigua, a Muslim chaplain also featured in the documentary, said:

“You’ve got to open the door to allow other people to experience who we are.”

When Ouza was awarded the “Airman of the Week” honor, her fellow trainees and instructors described her as “a true leader who will greatly contribute to the Air Force and anything she pursues.”

May Allah (SWT) keep granting success to our fellow Muslims such that they aim to achieve the ‘impossible’. Let’s be thankful to Allah and make dua for all others aiming to achieve big dreams and may they become true!

See also: Duas for Thanking Allah (SWT)

Source: Air Force Times