The council meetings of Frisco, a city in Texas, have increasingly become a platform for individuals to gain social media attention by making hateful comments against Indians. The latest incident involved Edward Jacob Lang, a January 6 rioter, who attended the council meeting on May 19 and referred to India as a 'sh*thole' without explicitly naming the country.
Hateful Remarks Against Hindus and Muslims
During his speech, Lang said, "The Hindus and the Muslims are teaming up to take over Texas. This is not Muslims versus Hindus here. They are here to eradicate the Christians; they are here to drive us out of our homeland." He further added, "You have to understand. These people do not want to assimilate. They have not come here to become Americans. They have come here to drag their third-world culture over to our country. If Jainism and Hinduism are so great, why are there countries sh*tholes? They are bringing this ideology here," calling America a Christian country.
Background of Edward Jacob Lang
Edward Jacob Lang, a conservative activist and Florida US Senate candidate, is a native New Yorker who participated in the January 6 Capitol riot and was later pardoned by President Donald Trump. Lang had to be escorted out of the meeting as his allotted speaking time expired. He yelled, "If I lived in Texas, I would burn down one of these mosques."
Council Meeting Agenda
The council meeting drew widespread attention as more than 40 people signed up to speak on an agenda item concerning the City Council's approval of plans for a mosque, a Hindu temple, and a Jain temple. The land for these places of worship has been zoned for any religious purpose for over 25 years. Mayor Jeff Cheney stated that if the projects meet all planning and zoning requirements, the authorities must approve them. "In all three cases, the zoning was approved more than 25 years ago," Cheney said. He emphasized, "What's before us tonight is not a policy-making agenda item. It's a procedural administrative decision based on zoning. The policymaking happened 25 and 30 years ago."
Zoning History
The land for the Jain temple was zoned in 1984, for the Hindu temple in 1993, and for the mosque in 2000. The council's role was limited to ensuring compliance with existing zoning laws.
