EDISON – Mayor Sam Joshi said symbols of hate and discrimination are not welcome in the township, after a piece of construction equipment, viewed as a symbol of hate by the Muslim community, was featured in the Aug. 14 India Day Parade.
The parade, along Oak Tree Road, from Edison to Woodbridge, marked the 75th anniversary of India’s independence and the division of the South Asian subcontinent into two nations, Hindu-oriented India and Muslim-oriented Pakistan, after years of civil strife.
In a statement Monday, Joshi said Edison is committed to celebrating and working in harmony with people from all cultures.
But an American-Islamic relations group is disappointed Joshi has not gone further in rebuking the parade organizers. The group also has called for parade organizers to apologize.
The parade, organized by the Indian Business Association (IBA), featured a piece of construction equipment with the photos of political leaders in India, who are described as proponents of hate against Muslims and other minorities, according to Azra Baig, chair of the South Brunswick’s Human Relations Commission.
“This bulldozer was included in a parade that was supposed to celebrate the national pride of this country,” Baig said during Monday’s Township Council work session meeting. “As someone who is Muslim, I find this terrorizing and harassing, and so does the Muslim community across New Jersey, across the country and the world.”
In India, Baig explained, homes, businesses and houses of worship are being bulldozed because of people’s faith and when they stand up for their rights.
“That bulldozer on Oak Tree Road was an evil display of bigotry, racism, injustice and prejudice. That was wrong,” a resident of Hana Road in Edison said.
Joshi said the India Day Parade is independently run and not a township-sponsored event, however his office was made aware that a piece construction equipment was used as a symbol of division and discrimination. He said any symbol or action that represents discrimination is unwelcome in Edison.
The IBA, which organized the parade, has not responded to an email request for comment. No one answered the phone at the association office in the Iselin section of Woodbridge, and the voicemail was not accepting messages.
Baig and Dylan Terpstra, operations coordinator of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) New Jersey, expressed concern to the council members that the symbolism could have more far-reaching effects. Baig wants to make sure this type of hate does spread in the school district, where already Muslims are sometimes blamed when fire alarms go off.
Terpstra said the construction equipment sends a message of intimidation to American Indians, Muslims and other minorities that the followers of India’s political leaders who have bulldozed homes and businesses are here and in control, which is why they need to be called out.
“Most people in America don’t understand this was a form of hate. This needs to be condemned, and the organizers need to be told it’s unacceptable; and there should be more of a vetting process,” he said.
Some of the Edison council members, who marched in the back of the parade and didn’t see the construction equipment, said they did not understand its meaning until days afterward.
Councilwoman Margot Harris said we’re all aware of how much hatred and intolerance there is going on in the country and across the world.
“But I do find what took place a week ago Sunday to be absolutely hideous, unacceptable. I believe that if it was in fact the Indian Business Association that was responsible for putting this there that they have to be held accountable and we need some answers about what they plan to do about this going forward,” said Harris, who also called for more education on cultural sensitivity and what kind of symbols are toxic to different cultures.
Council Vice President Joyce Ship-Freeman said she was disturbed by the event. She said if there were a noose in the parade, the council members would not have been walking behind it.
“This is not my Edison. This is not the Edison we should accept. We should all stand against it because if it’s one group today, it will be another group tomorrow. We have to all stand together. We did not know what a bulldozer meant,” said Ship-Freeman, adding she wants to hear from the parade organizers.
Maksut said CAIR is disappointed in Joshi, Woodbridge Mayor John E. McCormac and local officials who have yet to unequivocally condemn the use of the construction equipment – a symbol of violence and anti-Muslim animus.
McCormac is aware of the situation but has not issued a comment, a township spokesperson said.
“We continue our call on the IBA for an apology,” Maksut said.
“The Perth Amboy Area Branch NAACP stands with CAIR-NJ, the Indian American Muslim Council, Hindus for Human Rights and other organizations that denounced this act of hatred against the Muslim community,” the Rev. Donna Stewart, branch president, said in a statement.
“We call on Woodbridge Mayor John McCormac to join us in condemning Islamophobia and to commit to begin working with the NAACP towards antiracism policy in Woodbridge Township,” Stewart said.
Email: srussell@gannettnj.com
Suzanne Russell is a breaking news reporter for MyCentralJersey.com covering crime, courts and other mayhem. To get unlimited access, please subscribe or activate your digital account today.
