While looking through Diwali greetings this year, I was struck by the range of people celebrating. President Donald Trump lit a diya at the White House. New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani shared a video featuring rangoli and lamps. In Sacramento, community members gathered at California’s Capitol. Here in San Diego, Supervisor Monica Montgomery Steppe wished people a happy Diwali on social media.
These leaders agree on very little politically. Yet each found a reason to acknowledge the same festival.
As an Indian mother raising two daughters in San Diego, I enjoyed seeing a tradition we cherish being celebrated across such different political settings. Coming just after an election, those moments were a welcome change from the arguments filling our screens.
On Thursday, Assemblymembers Ash Kalra and Darshana Patel hosted Diwali at the Capitol with the Association of Indo Americans, the Federation of Indian Associations of San Diego and other community organizations. The celebration brought cultural performances and ceremonial lamp lighting to the Capitol’s West Steps.
The San Diego connection made it especially interesting to me. Through Patel and the participating organizations, our community helped bring the celebration to Sacramento. It reflected the work of people who organize events, maintain traditions and make room for others to take part.
That work can disappear behind the photographs of officials lighting lamps. Someone has to coordinate the program, prepare the performances and bring volunteers together. The community organizations deserve their share of the attention.
Gov. Gavin Newsom also offered Diwali wishes of hope and togetherness, while the White House issued a presidential message on Sunday. Seeing those greetings alongside Mamdani’s celebration and Montgomery Steppe’s local message was a reminder that goodwill can cross political lines, even when agreement on policy remains far away.
Families can appreciate a greeting while continuing to judge public officials on their decisions.
California’s holiday status does need clarification. Newsom signed legislation in 2025 adding Diwali to the state’s holidays, with conditional observance provisions rather than a universal day off. Litigation has since disrupted implementation: CalHR’s Oct. 13 update removed Diwali from its specified personal-holiday options because of the court case.
That distinction matters, particularly when social media posts can leave people with the impression that every school or workplace will close. The legal question deserves accurate coverage alongside the celebrations.
For families, though, Diwali’s meaning reaches well beyond the holiday calendar. I want my daughters to know its stories, enjoy its rituals and carry forward the parts that become meaningful to them. Sharing the occasion with friends is part of that pleasure.
There is also more to discover than a single description of the “festival of lights.” Diwali holds different meanings across religious and regional traditions. Even families celebrating on the same street may have different customs, foods and stories. Those differences make for good conversation.
San Diego has opportunities for those conversations at community festivals, libraries and neighborhood gatherings. Often, all it takes is an invitation and someone willing to ask a question. People need not know every custom before joining a celebration, and hosts need not turn every gathering into a lesson.
We should be realistic about what a public ceremony can accomplish. Lighting a lamp will not settle a policy dispute. Still, I appreciate occasions when public figures pause to celebrate something meaningful to the people they serve.
This Diwali gave us several such moments. What stays with me is the ease with which a familiar tradition appeared in so many different places.
Share the sweets, explain the tradition, invite someone to join. A festival’s message travels furthest when people have a chance to experience it together.
Shikha Bansal is a San Diego-based writer and community advocate.
