Image may be NSFW.
Clik here to view.
New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio declared Oct. 19 as Waris Ahluwalia Day in honor of the Sikh actor and designer during Diwali celebrations at the Gracie Mansion in Manhattan last week.
The unprecedented honor for 42-year-old Ahluwalia came amid increasing incidents of hate crime against the minority communities, including Sikhs.
“We believe when any community – when any community’s attacked or when any individual is attacked because of who they are, because of their faith, because of where they come from – an attack on one is an attack on all of us,” Mayor de Blasio said before declaring Oct. 19 as the Waris Ahluwalia Day.
“And that is something we believe deeply, and you will see whenever any community is affronted the NYPD will be present to protect that community and whenever there’s a hate crime we are very adamant.
“When we know something’s a hate crime we will call it a hate crime, and we will act on it as a hate crime to protect people and say it is unacceptable in the City of New York to act in any biased fashion against any of the great people that make up this city,” the mayor said.
Besides Blasio and his wife, other guests at the celebrations included Meera Joshi, Taxi and Limousine Commissioner; Greg Bishop, small business commissioner; Sree Sreenivasan; Roxanne Persaud; David Weprin, NYC’s assembly member and some diplomats from foreign missions in New York.
A total of some 300 people, including non-South Asians, attended the celebrations that began with the ceremonial lighting of the lamp by First Lady of NYC Chirlaine McCray. “It has been a number of years since there was a Diwali ceremony and celebration in Grace Mansion, and we thought it was time to bring Diwali back to Gracie mansion,” the mayor said in a brief address.
Referring to Ahluwalia, the mayor said, “he wears his Dastar (turban) wherever he goes and so he sends a powerful message to our city, to our country of countering ignorance, celebrating inclusion and advocating for religious understanding and tolerance in everything he does.”
The actor and designer, who at times have faced discrimination and harassment within the U.S. because of his turban, thanked the mayor for the incredible honor. HE, however, mentioned that while he has called New York City his home ever since he moved here from India as a child, after the 9/11 terror attacks, “people would glare at me with anger and hate as I walked down my own streets, in my own hometown.”
But then he said the honor was also significant because of the celebration of Diwali that signifies the triumph of good over evil, and which he said is more relevant this year than ever before.
Amid loud cheers and applause, the mayor said a special Diwali guide will be distributed to New York City teachers through the department of education to help them educate students in the city about the “meaning” of the Indian festival of lights.
“It’s such a beautiful holiday. Now we want all New Yorkers and particularly the young people of New York City to understand Diwali better. So now in our Department of Education we have offered to all teachers this guide so they can all teach Diwali. I’m going to tell them to come up with a more interesting title because the title is ‘Learning about Diwali.’ I know they can come up with something more creative,” the mayor said amid thunderous applause.
The post N.Y. Mayor Declares Oct. 19 As Waris Ahluwalia Day appeared first on News India Times.
