A Call For Equality And Recognition
Sunday 11 Dec 2016 - Nearly 100 NYC Hindus gathered outside the White House seeking to gain the administration's help in gaining more recognition and equality for Hindus in NYC. The NYC Hindu Coalition called for the demonstration after NYC Hindu community leaders felt they had not reached any successful resolution on better engaging NYC officials on Hindu community affairs.
NYC Hindus Want The Same Respect As Monotheists
The push for more recognition and equality for Hindus in NYC began after the city enacted two Muslim school holidays for Eid. The NYC school calendar now has official holidays for the world's major monotheistic faiths, but nothing for Hindus or Sikhs and Buddhists or Jains or any other non-monotheistic faith. The campaign began as a request for equal treatment and the addition of two school holidays for Hindus.
Perceived Discrimination
However, the community began to feel alienated after an initial meeting with the Mayor's Office in April of 2015 on the issue of adding Hindu holidays to the school calendar. The NYC Hindu Coalition was told it would be very difficult to add any other school holidays as there were no more free dates left in the school calendar. However, in June of 2015 the Mayor's office announced it would be adding Chinese New Year to the school calendar, and this created a feeling of misunderstanding and discrimination in the community.
A Forthcoming Resolution
Since the White House protest the NYC Hindu Coalition has reopened engagement with the Mayor's office and is now working for a broader campaign of more interaction between the NYC Hindu Community. On August 17th, Coalition leaders presented city officials with some of their internal projects, including creating community liaisons to different city offices, as well as organizing NYC Hindus along county and neighborhood lines so as to streamline Hindu involvement with elected officials. Both the city and Hindu community believe there is more to gain from discussion than protest.
Since the White House protest the NYC Hindu Coalition has reopened engagement with the Mayor's office and is now working for a broader campaign of more interaction between the NYC Hindu Community. On August 17th, Coalition leaders presented city officials with some of their internal projects, including creating community liaisons to different city offices, as well as organizing NYC Hindus along county and neighborhood lines so as to streamline Hindu involvement with elected officials. Both the city and Hindu community believe there is more to gain from discussion than protest.
No comments:
Post a Comment