A simmering dispute over the date the Jersey City school district observes the Muslim holiday Eid erupted into an ugly war of words at an interfaith religious dinner Thursday.
“You have some nerve coming here,” Councilman Yousef Saleh, who is Muslim, told school board President DeJon Morris at an interfaith Iftar dinner held by the Al Huda Islamic Center.
Saleh and others in the Muslim community have expressed frustration with the school board’s decision to not change the day off for the Eid Al-Fitr holiday, marking the end of Ramadan, from April 8 to the official dated derived from the lunar calendar, April 10.
Saleh and Morris agree that the councilman then apologized for his response during his brief remarks at the Iftar dinner, but little else that transpired since then. The bickering reignited a short time later at the dinner and the pair continued their argument like everyone else these days — on social media.
The dinner was attended by a number of elected officials, including two of the men running to be the next mayor and one running to be the next governor. No matter who’s right, it wasn’t a good look for either of them, said one of the dinner’s attendees who asked to remain anonymous.
Saleh’s speech was more of a “backhanded apology,” they said. “Saleh and Morris are not helping each other. Both of them have a propensity for not stopping, just not saying ‘enough is enough.’ Who has to have the last word?”
Jersey City Mayor and gubernatorial candidate Steve Fulop chimed in on social media with a false equivalency, likening the April 8 Eid observance to taking off Dec. 22 for the Christmas holiday. Unlike Eid, Christmas is always Dec. 25.
“When brought to the BOE’s attention they dug in and refused to change the date ... It is escalating now. Of course, people are offended,” Fulop posted on X.
Morris, a new member who took over leadership of the school board by ousting the board president and vice president, claimed in a lengthy Facebook post Saleh followed the speech by “verbally insult(ing) and verbally attack(ing) me even deeper.” He said Saleh referred to him as a “disgrace” and told him “‘you need to leave’ or ‘watch what happens.’ ”
“Are you threatening me Councilman Yousef J. Saleh?,” Morris said in his version of the events. “I reminded him that not only am I an elected official, but I’m also a 20-year veteran police detective. He should caution himself.”
In Saleh’s version, the councilman “extended my hand in an olive branch and (Morris) refused. I then asked (Morris) if he could make sure this did not happen again next year and he absolutely promised that he would make sure to never change it, ever, and that he would make sure it was celebrated on the wrong date in perpetuity.”
Morris, who said he plans to file an Equal Employment Opportunity complaint, said Saleh misheard him because he was shouting. Morris has continued to post about the event, referring to Saleh as a “bully.”
“I said it’s too late to change the date this year, but next year we will work on it,” Morris said in a text to The Jersey Journal on Friday.
Saleh is sticking to his version, saying he heard Morris clearly.
“He is calling me a bully and look at the words he uses,” Saleh said referring to Morris calling him a “disgruntled school girl.” “It is almost misogynistic … what about all the little girls in the district?”
The controversy began at a March school board meeting when Vice President Younass Barkouch — who has since been replaced as VP — urged the board change the date marking the holiday since it is a long day of feasting and prayer after fasting for a month.
A day later, Morris said the board calendar was approved last year, and to alter the observance date for 27,000 students and 6,000 employees less than two weeks before the holiday “would cause an enormous disruption.” The district is allowing Muslim students to take off April 10 as an excused absence.
“I believe that was an extraordinary compromise for the last minute,” Morris said in March. “We love all of our Muslim scholars and we support and respect our Muslim community.”
The event Thursday was attended by numerous Jersey City political figures, including Fulop, West Side Councilwoman Mira Prinz-Arey, Bergen-Layfayette Councilman Frank Gilmore, Council President Joyce Watterman, Former Gov. Jim McGreevey, District 2 Hudson County Commissioner Bill O’Dea and Barkouch.
Islam Elgahari and Zack, who declined to give his last name, sat with Morris and Saleh at the dinner and told The Jersey Journal that Saleh’s version of the events was accurate.
“In my opinion, a person like that who disrespected the community should have never been invited to such an event,” Zack said about Morris.
O’Dea did not speak about the altercation, but said in the future the school district should block off the expected days Eid might land on. When the date becomes apparent, the district can act according and prevent this mistake from happening.
Gilmore told The Jersey Journal he hopes to sit down with both Morris and Saleh to clear the air. He believes this dispute over Eid just got too personal.
“The bigger issue is we get it right,” Gilmore said about Eid. “I think once everyone takes a deep breath and unpacks what transpired, I think we can find a lot of common ground and get things done.”