Mosaic East NJ.com news site dedicated to serving New Jersey’s diverse and underrepresented communities.

Welcome to this week’s newsletter! Discover places to celebrate Diwali, explore a new culinary discovery and join us in recognizing a queen who has received an impressive honor.

Diwali, also known as the “Festival of Lights,” is an annual five-day festival focused on the victory of light over darkness and good over evil. Trend reporter Vashti Harris took a look at some upcoming events.

In its history, “Diwali is almost here. Check out these 7 upcoming events in New Jersey » she tells us where to celebrate the festival with dance performances, painting competitions, a Diya lighting ceremony and lots of food!

Vashti also brought us news of Queen Latifah of Newark, that President Joe Biden recently introduced The National Medal of Arts — the highest distinction awarded to artists and patrons by the federal government. Born Dana Elaine Owens in Newark, Queen Latifah rose to fame after releasing her debut album “All Hail the Queen” in 1989. She was 19 years old. Today, she stars in “Equalizer” and promotes community programs with Newark Mayor Ras Baraka.

Columnist Karim Shamsi-Basha found another inexpensive place to dine in his column, “Affordable eating: This New Jersey restaurant offers the best in Thai cuisine. In this one, he introduces us to Aroy-D The Thai Elephant in Verona and its tasty Thai dishes, but ends with a surprise dessert. He said: “You can’t leave without enjoying a Thai ice cream. I tried the pink elephant in honor of the restaurant. It had a vanilla base with graham crackers, strawberries and whipped cream.

Well, friends, that’s it for this week. I’m going to eat Thai ice cream. Stay tuned for more interesting stories from Mosaic and NJ.com.

Mosaic essential reading

• Hispanic renters in New Jersey spend the most on housing costs, according to the latest data About 51 percent, or 204,335 Hispanic households, spent more than a third of their income on rent and other housing costs last year.

• Arguing against his own belief, Newark teenager wins prestigious debate Science Park High School’s Ashley Lourenco topped the Lincoln-Douglas category at the New York Invitational Debate and Speech Tournament.

• This New Jersey nonprofit help muslim women facing domestic violence Domestic violence is still heavily stigmatized and silent within the Muslim community, but Wafa House is fighting back by offering counseling and workshops.

• Black women are higher risk of dying of breast cancer. Here’s why. Studies indicate that Black women often experience higher levels of chronic stress due to systemic issues such as racism, discrimination, and socioeconomic disadvantage.

• Why do political parties not invest in black-owned media? | Notice The Democratic and Republican parties are working to get the black vote, but have not invested ad money in local radio to court black voters.

In case you missed it NJ.com

More at NJ.comjournalist Nyah Marshall tells us about a mayor who doesn’t really like celebrating Diwali. His story, “No fireworks during Diwali, ” mayor tells one of New Jersey’s largest Native American communities, “is expected to spark some controversy. Imagine the 4th of July without fireworks…

The story of journalist Karin Price Mueller, “Early voting begins In New Jersey, where can I vote? reminds us that there is no need to wait until election day, November 5. New Jersey makes it easier for voters: in addition to weekday hours, polling stations will also be open on Saturday from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. and on Sunday from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Stay tuned for more compelling stories from Mosaic journalists and NJ.com.

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