Should Raleigh schools close on Diwali? Hindu leader says it’s ‘not fair’ to be open.
A national Hindu leader is calling for all Raleigh schools — public and private — to close Oct. 24 to observe the Hindu holiday of Diwali.
Rajan Zed, the president of the Universal Society of Hinduism, said in a statement Wednesday it “was simply not fair” for Hindu students in Raleigh to have classes on Diwali while schools are closed during festivals of other religions.
Zed urged Wake County Superintendent Cathy Moore and school board chairwoman Lindsay Mahaffey to work toward adding Diwali as an official holiday in its Raleigh schools. He also called on State Superintendent Catherine Truitt, Wake County Board of Commissioners chairman Sig Hutchinson and Raleigh Mayor Mary-Ann Baldwin to persuade schools in Raleigh to declare Diwali as a holiday.
On Oct. 24, Hindus around the world will mark the start of Diwali, a five-day festival of lights. Zed said it’s vital for Hindu families to celebrate Diwali at home with their children.
“Closing schools on Diwali would ensure that and would also display how respectful and accommodating these schools were to their faith,” Zed said.
Zed made similar calls for schools to be closed on Diwali in Trenton, New Jersey; Fresno and Stockton in California and Long Island in New York.
Balancing community requests
In a statement Wednesday, Wake said that its calendar committee tries to honor community requests while maintaining instructional integrity and adherence to state law. Wake says the calendar committee includes parents, teachers, representatives from the Hindu community and members from other community organizations.
“Committee members spend hours discussing and creating a draft that meets the needs of schools, teachers, and students while also considering the needs of families and the community,” Wake said in the statement.
“Unfortunately, we are not able to honor all requests. First and foremost, we must ensure that an instructional calendar supports learning and teaching and adheres to state law.”
Wake doesn’t schedule classes during Christian holidays such as Christmas and Good Friday. This 2022-23 traditional school calendar includes teacher workdays on the Jewish holiday of Rosh Hashanah and the Muslim holiday of Eid al-Fitr.
If classes are held on a religious holiday, Wake students can get an excused absence for a religious observance. Students are still expected to make up the work they missed during an excused absence.
“If schools had declared holidays around other religious days, why not Diwali,” Zed said. “Holidays of all major religions should be honored and no one should be penalized for practicing their religion.”
Hindu population growing in NC
A school holiday on Diwali would be a step in the positive direction in view of the number of Hindu students, according to Zed.
Most of the world’s estimated 1.2 billion Hindus live in India. But the Indian population has been rising in North Carolina, particularly in Wake County.
According to Census 2020 American Community Survey, there are 29,838 people who are from India living in Wake.
The Sri Venkateswara Temple of North Carolina in Cary is the largest Hindu temple in the state, with about 20,000 members, The News & Observer previously reported.
This story was originally published May 12, 2022 at 7:00 AM with the headline "Should Raleigh schools close on Diwali? Hindu leader says it’s ‘not fair’ to be open.."
