The fifth case in this series is a religious discrimination case brought by the federal Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) against retail clothier Abercrombie & Fitch (A&F). The case involved a Muslim woman, Samantha Elauf, who claimed that A&F declined to hire her because she wore a headscarf for religious reasons which would have violated A&F’s dress code. SCOTUS ruled in Elauf’s favor by an 8-1 margin.

The technical question presented to SCOTUS was narrow. Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 makes it unlawful for an employer to fail to hire an applicant because of his or her religion. The issue was whether an employer could violate this provision without “actual knowledge” of the applicant’s religion.

Background