It’s somewhere between a challenge and an invitation: “Show me where this is racist,” said Hadley Planning Board member John Mieczkowski, days after he made insulting comments about the Indian heritage of an applicant planning to open a repair garage in North Hadley.
Mieczkowski appeared to have been referring to the owners of Exotic Auto Repair, Paul Narus and Davinder Kaur, who were traveling in their home country of India and not present at the meeting when he said, “Tell him no camels allowed here,” after Hadley contractor Thomas Quinlan Jr. showed the board a rendering of the family’s proposed changes to the building. “There will be no camels here. Leave the camel outside.”
Captured on Hadley Media’s live feed and recording of the meeting and circulated on social media, the comments soon went viral and stirred up vitriol throughout the Valley.
“Tell your neighbors,” Hadley native Jes Thayer wrote on Facebook. “Tell them, no racists here, leave the racists outside.”
Call it what you will: Racist, culturally insensitive, ignorant, geographically … confused? We call it all of the above — and we call on Mieczkowski, who is running for re-election against write-in candidate Mark Dunn and is also seeking a seat on the Select Board, to step down.
But that doesn’t seem likely. Far from being contrite, Mieczkowski, who was recalled from the Select Board in 2002, dismissed controversy over his remarks as some residents being overly sensitive.
“Maybe I’m not politically correct, but it’s too late for that,” Mieczkowski said, adding that his reference to camels was meant as a metaphor for not bringing unattractive plans to the board.
“It was just a joke,” Mieczkowski said. “It’s no big deal. There’s nothing to be offended about.”
We’ve heard this kind of empty apology before. In fact, “Johnny Mitch” may just be Hadley’s own Roseanne Barr, who last year made racist comments on Twitter at the expense of former presidential aide, Valerie Jarrett, who is African-American. As a result of the controversy, ABC dumped the comedian’s recently relaunched sitcom, while Barr stuck to her best defense: “It’s a joke.”
Don’t get us wrong. There’s some humor to be found in the Hadley controversy — a true comedy of errors. We’re still scratching our heads over the “camels” reference. For some reason, it made us think back to the time, in 2016, Mieczkowski said that he wanted a lot of things, but a new library wasn’t one of them. “I want a boat and a new fishing pole, but that ain’t gonna happen,” he said, adding that he couldn’t see spending town money on a library. “I’ve never been to [one] in my life and don’t plan to.”
Likewise, it’s hard not to appreciate Mieczkowski’s clueless comment to the Gazette that “I have no intent to be a bigot, a racist, a sexist or whatever.” But Mieczkowski’s facepalm flubs are also troubling on a deeper level. He’s not just any clueless commenter — he’s an elected official — and he is by the very nature of his position representing the town of Hadley, which deserves better. In the wake of his remarks, we commend the many residents of Hadley who have countered Mieczkowski’s ignorance with thoughtful commentary.
Jessica Kem said she was appalled by Mieczkowski’s intolerance as an elected official and that his comments “make clear that he cannot be an impartial judge of the merits of the applicant’s case.”
Select Board member Molly Keegan criticized Mieczkowski’s fellow board members for not calling out his behavior that night, writing: “Shame on the Planning Board for not addressing it immediately. I would like a formal response on how you intend to handle it now to be sure nothing like this occurs again.”
And Select Board member Christian Stanley called Mieczkowski’s defense of his comments “an embarrassment to the Town of Hadley,” suggesting disciplinary action be taken against Mieczkowski so that all residents and visitors can be assured they are being treated fairly and equally.
As long as we’re dreaming of a better world, here’s another item for the wishlist: The Planning Board is currently made up of five white men elected to five-year terms. We hope to see more women and people of color make decisions about the town’s future.