March 12, 2016

Man's "fox hat" religion challenged

Man says DMV denied his license renewal because he wore 'silly fox hat'A man in Oregon says the DMV denied his license renewal because they thought he was wearing a silly hat in his photo. However the man says that was a violation of his religious freedom--and a judge agreed.

The man, who goes by the name 'Bishop' is a practitioner of a Native American religion, in which each person has a wild animal totem. His is a fox--hence, the hat he wears wherever he goes.
Comment:  I'm guessing this man's "religion" is probably a joke. Getting a "spirit animal" or "animal totem," usually in a "vision quest," may be the biggest stereotype of Native religion.

Yes, some Native religions have a practice vaguely like this, but as far as I know, it doesn't require wearing anything. It's even less likely that a Native religion would require wearing a children's plaything, or whatever "Bishop" has on.

Offhand, I'd guess that this guy doesn't wear his fox hat everywhere. That he isn't a member of a tribe and can't name the tribe whose religion he supposedly practices. That he got the idea from Johnny Depp's crowhead, or something equally silly, and copied it. In short, that his beliefs are insincere.

For more on the subject, see Rowling's Magic in North America.

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