A Hasidic police cadet claims he was fired by the NYPD because he refused to shave off his beard—and he says that it was religious discrimination. “I always wanted to be a police officer,” Fishel Litzman, who was just a month away from receiving his shield, told the News. “This was unfortunate.”
Litzman, 38, says he refused to shave his beard because it went against his religion. His lawyer says the NYPD knew that when Litzman first took the police exam and applied: “He said from the outset it was a matter of religious observance. He never made a secret of it,” said Nathan Lewin. Despite getting test scores of 99, 100 and 96, Litzman was continually written up for failing “to maintain personal appearance.”
In a March 18 memo to the NYPD, Litzman defended himself and his record, and stated that “as an Orthodox Chasidic Jew it is absolutely forbidden in my religious beliefs to cut or trim my beard in any way. I am being disciplined only because I maintain my religious beliefs and observances.” NYPD spokesman Paul Browne said they tried to accomodate Litzman...in the most minimal way imaginable: “The NYPD makes reasonable accommodations in this regard, permitting beards for religious purposes to be kept to 1 (millimeter) in length."
One source told the News that the beard was a safety hazard: “You have to be clean shaven so the mask can fit,” the source said, referring to masks worn during counterterrorism training. “If it doesn’t fit it can be a safety issue—and a liability issue.” Litzman says the NYPD did not state a reason for being fired on his dismissal papers: “They didn’t give me anything."
Manhattan BP Scott Stringer released the following statement on Litzman, and urged police to reconsider his eligibility:
I am deeply troubled by reports this morning that a Hasidic police cadet was fired for refusing to trim his beard. While the NYPD can exercise control over the personal appearance of its force in order to ensure that all officers are capable of performing their duties, they are also required to make a reasonable accommodation for religious beliefs.
The NYPD has done a commendable job in recent years of building a police force that tries to reflect the populations that they serve. Fishel Litzman should be no exception. I urge the police commissioner to reconsider this case as well as the NYPD's rules about religious accommodation more broadly and, in so doing, to make a clear statement in support of religious expression for all.
