Halima Jelloul, her husband and two daughters were excited to take a trip to Lilac Resort on Friday. Minutes after arriving, they were told they couldn’t enter the pool because of what they were wearing. “About 10-15 minutes, the owner approached us and said that because of the burkini that my daughter and I were wearing, we are not allowed to enter the water slide,” Jelloul said. “I was very uncomfortable, obviously. I wasn’t shocked that it happened,” said Jelloul’s 14-year-old daughter, Salma Douida. The burkini is a full body swimsuit similar to a wetsuit, designed to respect Islamic traditions of modest dress. Lifesaving Society Manitoba says there should be no reason the burkini should not be allowed. “As long as the burkini in question is properly constructed, there are no safety concerns,” Christopher Love, the agency’s safety management coordinator, said in an email. at the same time a full range of motion in the water.” Lilac Resort owner Dan Manaigre said he approached the family because he didn’t know what a burkini was and thought it was street clothes — a major public health violation if worn in a swimming pool. “I want to apologize to the family because I just didn’t know,” Manaigre said. Manaigre sent a note to all his staff explaining what the burkini is and that they are allowed. “Moving forward, everyone has been advised that the burkini will be acceptable. However, they will continue to not enforce streetwear in the pool,” he said. After discussion with the family and a health inspector, Jelloul was told that she and her family could swim, but chose to leave. “My daughters were crying. It wasn’t really a happy time for us, so I had to check in with my daughters to see if they were okay and if they wanted to stay or go,” Jellul explained. Moving forward, the family hopes to raise awareness of what the burkini is. “On a daily basis we experience this at the beach. People looking at you not knowing what it is, which is okay and there needs to be some education,” Jelloul said. “And I think that Muslim women or anyone who dresses modestly should have the right and that if this happens to them, they should speak up,” Duida added. The knowledge they hope can prevent someone else from experiencing a similar situation.
