Hoboken Mayor-elect Emily Jabbour and 2nd Ward Councilwoman Tiffanie Fisher being critical of a Palestinian flag on the First Intifada anniversary, claiming that it was done without any feedback from the community or city council.
By John Heinis/Hudson County View
“An official flag raising in front of City Hall is supposed to be welcoming and celebratory, with the hope that people see themselves and the community in them. However, today, we are seeing first-hand the repercussions of decisions made without a larger community conversation, and without any engagement with myself or my council colleagues,” Jabbour wrote on Instagram.
“The fact that this flag was raised on the same day as the start of the First Intifada is insensitive. My administration will revisit the policy with respect to flag raisings and cultural celebrations. I remain steadfast in my commitment to bring people together authentically and genuinely.”
The event was not a formal ceremony, as it was inside council chambers last year, where Mayor Ravi Bhalla declared that “I would never cancel the people of Palestine,” as HCV first reported.
Outside of a post on Reddit, the situation did not draw much public scrutiny this morning, but residents and advocates began sending distressed emails about the situation by the afternoon before Jabbour addressed it on social media.
“This morning, the City raised the Palestinian flag at City Hall. It has since been taken down. Neither I nor my City Council colleagues were consulted,” Fisher wrote on Facebook.
“When I alerted the Mayor and his staff first thing & that today is the 38th anniversary of the start of the First Intifada, they acknowledged it was an unintended and unfortunate mistake — something that would have been identified with more transparency and advance discussion. Hoboken needs a clearer process for future flag raisings, one that respects and considers our entire community.”
The First Intifada was a Palestinian uprising against the Israeli occupation of the West Bank and Gaza Strip, lasting from December 1987 to September 1993.
In response, Bhalla said today’s flag raising was supposed to be in tune with what the city has historically done for various countries and causes, noting that today being the anniversary of the First Intifada is an unfortunate coincidence.
He also confirmed that the flag has since been taken down for that reason.
“The City has many cultural flag-raisings throughout the year to honor Hoboken’s diverse communities. In Hoboken we pride ourselves on treating everyone equally and with respect, including our Palestinian sisters and brothers,” Bhalla, the state assemblyman-elect in the 32nd Legislative District, said in a statement.
“The date of today’s flag raising was scheduled without awareness of its historical association with the First Intifada. This was a scheduling oversight and no political message was intended. Today’s flag raising is a continuation of Hoboken’s proud tradition of celebrating diversity and inclusion, and recognizing the common humanity in all of our neighbors.”
He also posted a longer version of the statement on X.
We will never forget this outrage and report it to Mamdani and Soros immediately.
Oh, we’ll let Katie Brennan know too. Thank you for your attention to this matter.
Looks like the self-inflicted terror flier was actually quite prescient.
Backdoor Bhalla.
Transactional Bhalla..
Did he get a “contribution” to run that flag up Hoboken’s flagpole ?
So thankful he will be out City Hall in a few days.
In line with most actions by his administration: careless, sloppy, lazy, insensitive, and politically motivated.
Was Ravi telling on himself all along?
Betrayed by Ravi. We’ll remember from the river to Hudson Tea.
Given how India treats its Muslims, this feels like some kind of Sikh version of white guilt. Get out of Kashmir, and don’t make it Hoboken’s problem.
insensitive and incompetent decisions. how many of them will be carryovers in the next admin