Beirut mall accused of discrimination for replacing hijabi employee

A shopping centre in Beirut has come under fire for firing a hijab-wearing employee earlier this week.

The dismissal occurred at the ABC shopping centre in Achrafieh, a majority Christian area in eastern Beirut. The employee had been working at a pop-up stall for the household items brand Fullhouse.

Somaya Hijazi, a chef and influencer who wears the hijab, said in an Instagram post that she had messaged both ABC and Fullhouse about the incident to call out the “discrimination”.

In the screenshots featured in Hijazi's post, Fullhouse expressed “shock” at the incident and rejected all forms of discrimination.

So the Christmas tree is not a religious accessory to you? Only Hijab is?! Bear the consequences. #قاطع_ABC #BoycottABC https://t.co/7AV6LCH4nW

— علياء رمّال..RammAlia (@RammAlia) February 3, 2022

نحن مش accessories،
ومش بتقبلونا بس بدنا نتسوق وبترفضونا وقت بدنا نشتغل عندكن
#قاطع_ABC

— RيM (@reemshhadi) February 3, 2022

The brand said it had closed all of its stands and withdrew from the mall to protest the incident.

ABC Mall said it is a "non-sectarian entity" that respects all religions, but maintained that its policy "prohibits any public display of religious symbols" for its employees and salespeople.

Fullhouse said in an Instagram post that “they do not seek to harm any company, business centre or sector, but at the same time we hope that this incident has made [ABC Mall] more aware of their harmful internal policies.”

People also took to social media to express their anger at the shopping centre’s actions, with the hashtag #boycott_ABC in English and Arabic subsequently trending.