NEW YORK (1010 WINS) — Mayor Eric Adams and Department of Education Chancellor David Banks on Thursday announced their support for a bill that would recognize Diwali as an official holiday at New York City public schools.
Diwali is a festival of lights celebrated in fall by Hindu, Sikh, Jain and some Buddhist students.
State Assemblywoman Jennifer Raskumar of Queens, the elected official who introduced the bill, spoke alongside Adams and Banks at the press conference.
“The time has come to recognize over 200,000 New Yorkers of the Hindu, Buddhist, Sikh and Jain faiths who celebrate Diwali, the Festival of Lights,” said Raskumar. “That is why today I stand with New York City Mayor Eric Adams and our school's chancellor, David Banks, to light the way forward to make Diwali once and for all, a school holiday in the City of New York.”
Adams emphasized the value of intercultural and interreligious exchange among students.
“This is an educational moment, because when we acknowledge Diwali, we are going to encourage children to learn about Diwali,” said Adams. “We're going to have them start talking about what it is to celebrate the festival of lights, and how to turn the light on within yourself… education must be a place where we develop the full personhood of our children, not only to make them academically smart, but emotionally intelligent — and that intelligence comes from acknowledging and seeing each other.”
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