CONNECTICUT- Co-founder of Edible Arrangements and his wife
are suing a Connecticut country club for rejecting their membership application
last year because they are Muslim. 

Kamran Farid and his wife,
Kara, sued the Pine Orchard Yacht & Country Club in Branford in state court
in August. He claimed it was an act of discrimination, racism and bigotry.

Farid said some members sent
racist letters against his application at the club. The club has a $30,000
beginning fee and annual payments of $8,000.

Farid was a temporary member
at the club for two years. Once he decided that he wanted to be a permanent
one, the club rejected him.

The lawsuit he filed last
month stated that members did not want him to join the club because they
believed he “supported terrorism” and disrespected his race, color, origin, and
religion.

 It also
claimed that members sent letters to the membership board complaining that his
wife and daughters will be wearing hijabs and will bring in more Muslim members
if accepted.

Farid said
he received a letter from the club saying his membership was ending and he was
no longer allowed on club property. He said no reason was given.

“It hurt.
My daughters were hurt,” he said Tuesday. “I didn’t know what to say to my
kids. That hurt me more than anything, to sit there and explain to my kids they
can’t play with their friends and they can’t go there anymore.”

The club’s lawyer, William Murray, told The
News that all these claims are untrue and that the court process will reveal
the truth.