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Statue of Gandhi comes under fire in Cerritos. File Photo
By Brian Hews
Cerritos – A national human rights group will be holding a protest at Cerritos City Hall this Saturday to demand that city officials remove a statue of Gandhi that has recently been the subject of vandalism within the city limits.
Members of the media were alerted late Wednesday afternoon about the protest via email.
“Believing the City of Cerritos has turned a deaf ear to a public concern, a group working since July to organize local residents opposed to a controversy-beset Gandhi statue now plans to demonstrate for its removal outside City Hall this coming Saturday,” said Arvin Valmuci, an organizer of the event in a statement.
Organization for Minorities of India is coordinating the event that will begin at 11am on September 14 outside the Cerritos City Hall located at the corner of 183rd Street and Bloomfield Avenue.
OFMI is also coordinating local residents and community leaders to speak out against the statue at Thursday’s Cerritos City Council meeting.
“The city will not stop hearing from us until it begins listening to us,” said Valmuci. “Our protests will end the moment the city withdraws its approval from this monstrous statue.”
Mohandas K. Gandhi (1869-1948), political and spiritual leader of India. Location unknown. Français : Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi (1869-1948), Guide politique et spirituel de l’Inde. Lieu inconnu. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
Organizers tell Hews Media Group-Community Newspaper that they have been “mistreated” by current Cerritos Mayor Bruce Barrows during the past several weeks over the Gandhi statue removal.
“Support for removing the statue, located outside the Chugh Law Firm on Carmenita Road, has spread throughout the area over the past two months as opponents feel increasingly alarmed by what they perceive as the city’s failure to properly address their concerns,” Valmuci said.
“Mayor Bruce Barrows provided the only formal response to the issue in an August 5 letter to OFMI, in which he confirmed: “[The Chugh Firm] was required to provide a statue or monetary contribution as a part of the Art In Public Places Program…. The City Council received and approved the statue.”
HMG-CN was sent a copy of the response from Barrows by the organization.
Bhajan Singh, director of OFMI, noted: “If the city initiated the requirement and subsequently approved the statue, then they bear responsibility. If the city hadn’t compelled Chugh Law Firm to make a donation to its Art in Public Places Program, none of this would have ever happened. Now Cerritos citizens are faced with the unfortunate statue of Gandhi, who has nothing to do with the USA and the truth of whose life is actually repulsive to most Americans.”
OFMI representatives plan to attend and present a report about Gandhi’s “dark history to all five councilmembers,” on Thursday, September 12, the press statement stressed.
“We will make three main points,” said Valmuci. “First, why is the city council not responding to our documented points about Gandhi’s background? Second, why did the city approve installation of a statue of a religious icon? Third, why is the city violating its own ‘intent and purpose’ for the Art in Public Places Program?”
Valmuci cited the opening statement of City of Cerritos’ Municipal Code Section 22 stating: “The purpose of the city of Cerritos art in public places program is to promote the general welfare by encouraging pride in the community, increasing property values, enhancing the quality of life through artistic opportunities, uniting the community through shared cultural experiences.” His response? “The Gandhi statue impedes the general welfare by promoting a shameful icon, endangers our quality of life by implicitly supporting the intolerance to which he devoted his life, and divides the community.”
Representing African-American, Caucasian, and South Asian communities, five speakers are scheduled for Saturday’s protest including: Jada Bernard, Pieter Singh, and M. R. Paul, Dr. S. Muni, and Bhajan Singh.
Speakers tell HMG-CN that they “are expected to invoke the same reasons for opposing the Gandhi statue given from the beginning, namely: Gandhi cultivated a friendship with Hitler, sexually abused and exploited his grandnieces, promoted racial segregation of blacks in South Africa, was nominated and rejected for a Nobel Peace Prize five times, tried bribing a Southern Californian woman to keep silent about her husband’s murder by his followers, and was instrumental in perpetuating the practice of caste in South Asian society.”
The Organization for Minorities of India was founded “to advance individual liberties of Christians, Buddhists, Dalits, Muslims, Sikhs, and other minorities of South Asian origin, particularly those marginalized by the Hindu caste system.”
The group also “encourages secularism, progressive human rights, liberation of oppressed peoples, and universal human dignity.”
HMG-CN contacted Barrows, and officials at Cerritos City Hall for a comment about the situation, but calls were not returned as of noon on Thursday.
Thursday, September 12, 2013.
http://cerritospublicworks.blogspot.com/
Tues ( 9/11/13) evening, dark hrs, drove by the sculpture. There was a homeless body, sleeping adj to the area surrounding the sculpture. Also, present was a vacant-abandoned cycle in the prox. of the sculpture.
• No Lights illuminating the art.
• No security Lights.
• Forgotten landscape maintenance.
• Area was full of tree debris.
• Area was in shambles, as the property owner-landlord should be ashamed of the exterior condition of the premise.
This area is prime target for a construction truck to have a run-a-way accident, as is a very dark section of town, with lot of highway overweight trucking. Where is Supervisors Knabe’s Sheriff patrol and what is Palos Verdes Resident:”Keith Swennson”; Director of 90703 Sheriffs, doing to stop homeless camps? Where are the ( VOP ); Volunteers on Patrol for 90703?????
http://hmg.theserver.me/loscerritosnews/2013/09/12/cerritos-gandhi-statue-protest-set-for-saturday-at-city-hall/
Has anyone inspected the city of Cerritos – Shoemaker Gore Water falls on the 91 Fwy:
1) Dead Trees.
2) Green Mold Water.
3) Weeds taller then the rock boulders.
4) Burned out lights.
5) Pond flooding from breached irrigation.
6) Debris dumped.
7) Where is code enforcement??
8) Where is PW-Director of P&R Todd Kuh???
http://cerritospublicworks.blogspot.com/
I am appalled at the views of these fringe elements and the way they seem to have a free run in Cerritos. They DO NOT represent a majority view of either Indians or, anyone else around the world. And certainly not of those who have studied the Indian Freedom movement and his principles of non-violence.
It is interesting to see these elements avoid any reference to the Indian freedom struggle, his fight against untouchability and human scavenging, or his dedication to Hindu-Muslim unity – the latter in the face of opposition from a majority of Indians who were scarred by the Partition of India and which indeed led to his assassination.
This was also a man who eschewed political office and was not content to rest on his “victory” over the British – on the night India was celebrating its Freedom in Delhi, he was fasting in far away Calcutta praying for an end to communal violence.
To these elements who oppose Gandhi, I need to ask – do you also then condemn MLK Jr who was greatly influenced by Gandhi? Or Nelson Mandela? Are you suggesting that their intellect was too minimal to embrace the “truth” about Gandhi? And, pray, what woke you up almost 70 years after his death to his failings?
And, finally, every one of the Heroes we celebrate has had his or her failings (google Mother Teresa, for example) – they are as human as we are, despite their other superhuman qualities.
Ask yourselves, those of you who stood on Bloomfield and 183rd today, What have YOU done lately in your life? And have you thought of protesting in India? Gandhi would certainly have welcomed it and embraced you – he did embrace the British and many others who maligned him. I suggest you let go of your bitterness and learn from him…
This group in the Central Valley has their facts wrong.
First Mohatma Gandhi was not in favor of South African Apartheid, in fact he fought against it as a lawyer representing African clients against whites.
Second, he did nothing to promote the caste system in India, but did not vocally opposed it either as his main focus was on removing British rule from India.
Third, he slept in the same bed a few times with his nieces to prove that he was not cheating on his wife, until a few of his advisors told him that was not a good idea. There was nothing sexual, just naiveté and momentary stupidity on Gandhi’s part.
While Gandhi did write disparagingly against native blacks early on when he was first in South Africa, as a way to fit in and help mostly Indian merchants in South Africa to gain voting and other civil rights.
That changed after he himself was arrested in South Africa and was discriminated against due to the color of his skin by the white ruling class.
After his arrest and incarceration in South Africa his opinion of Africans changed drastically.
It was in South Africa that his philosophy of non-violent protest was created and where his philosophy of Indian unity between Hindus, Muslims, and other Indians was formed.
Indian unity was and still is a very controversial theory and the reason Gandhi was assassinated; it was the next cause he pursued after Indians won their independence from British Colonial rule. Had he not have been assassinated he my well have fought to overthrow the Hindu caste system, but he first needed to unify Muslims and Hindus, and that cost him his life.
Dear Mr. Jack Smith,
It appears that you have started to dig deeper into Gandhi’s past. I request you to keep digging and you will find much more unpalatable. All the best while on this journey.
Saturday, September 14, 2013.
Gandhi Humor | Increase in Tax Revenue 90703 |
http://hmg.theserver.me/loscerritosnews/2013/09/12/cerritos-gandhi-statue-protest-set-for-saturday-at-city-hall/
SIDE BAR:
Can not help but wonder, if this late in the game personal hoopla over Gandhi Art was not seeded by the CCC in order to promote sales tax growth, for the increase of sales for the new mattress stores? My God, have not heard this much back door sex spoken at Cerritos City Council Meeting, since the COW Insemination Period back in the 50’s. My God, after reading above Facebook rants, even Dr. Ruth, 84 YO sex therapist can learn allot.
http://www.cerritos.us/RESIDENTS/tv3/video_archive.php
http://cerritos.granicus.com/MediaPlayer.php?view_id=15&clip_id=3084.
Also, coincidental, the Huntington Beach Rave is being advertised on TV News Broadcasts!! Undoubtedly, both Gandhi and Rave will spike certain sales in the bedroom community of Cerritos.
After all of this debating dialog about Gandhi, the sculptures home in Cerritos is misplaced and should be located in more central section of town, along with more protection.
Real Estate is about location-location-location, as the present home in Truckers Alley is most disrespectful for this art piece!!!