WEST LANTANA, FLORIDA, January 15, 2004: Leila Persaud, a retired teacher who lives in a gated community (a subdivision of homes where access to the roads is allowed only for residents, who pass through a locked gate) of West Lantana in Florida said she faces fines and a trip to court if she continues to fly a jhandi (brightly colored Hindu prayer flag on a bamboo pole) in front of her house. The Rivermill homeowners association board voted last year to ban religious symbols from all 377 of the community’s front yards, except during a few weeks around official holidays such as Christmas. Mike Magnanti, president of the board, said the rule was an attempt to address residents’ complaints fairly that Persaud’s jhandi looks like “a torn, tattered towel in a tree.”
“If she wants to put it in front during a holiday period, that’s OK,” he said. “If she wants to display it during the full year, she needs to put it in her back yard.”
Persaud and her priest, Vishnu Sharma, say the rule discriminates against Hindus. Florida American Civil Liberties Union attorney Jim Green agrees. “Unfortunately the [homeowners association] might have the power to pass such a discriminatory regulation,” Green said. “Whether such a discriminatory regulation would be enforceable in the state or federal courts is another question.” Persaud has refused to move hers from its spot by her front door. Her only concession has been to lower it so it’s hidden among some bushes.
A daily summary of world news for Hindus and non-Hindus alike