DISTURBING

Muslim Inmates Fed Pork in Alaska Prison for Ramadan Meal

A federal judge has reportedly granted a restraining order to stop the “cruel and unusual punishment.”

A federal judge on Thursday reportedly slapped prison guards in Alaska with a restraining order to stop them from feeding Muslim inmates pork for the one meal they get each day during Ramadan. The ruling came in response to a lawsuit filed earlier this week by the Council on American-Islamic Relations, which accused the Anchorage Correctional Complex of “cruel and unusual punishment.” “CAIR has reported an unprecedented spike in bigotry targeting American Muslims and members of other minority groups since the election of Donald Trump as president,” the organization said in a statement. Muslim inmates observing Ramadan go without food for about 18 hours a day, and activists say the one meal they are given—which is far below the recommended daily dose in terms of calories—is mostly inedible due to the inclusion of pork, which is forbidden in Islam. The Alaska corrections department has yet to comment on the ruling or the lawsuit.