The mayor of Linden, New Jersey, which has seen a rise in its ultra-Orthodox community in recent years, allegedly opposed the employment of Jews in local schools. In a lawsuit filed by the former assistant superintendent of schools Paul Oliveira, he alleges Mayor Derek Armstead expressed a desire to prevent "a takeover of the city by guys with big hats and curls" (referring to payot, the sidelocks worn by some ultra-Orthodox Jews). The mayor, however, has dismissed these accusations as "nonsense."
According to the lawsuit, Armstead, who is currently running for a seat in the U.S. House of Representatives, discussed the matter in a secretly recorded conversation. In the recording, he warns against the ultra-Orthodox community taking over the city, which has around 44,000 residents.
The lawsuit claims that during a phone call with two senior education department employees, the trio spoke candidly about whom they thought should be hired by the school system.
The mayor frequently used the term "people with big hats and curls," and noted the need to prevent them from "taking over," the city. He cautioned that without urgent measures, Linden could end up like other New Jersey cities such as Newark, which he described as "hell" due to alleged control by ultra-Orthodox Jews. "Linden will go the same way as Roselle, Irvington, Newark if we don’t manage this thing the way that we’ve been trying to manage it, and that’s having full and complete control of who gets hired."
Armstead also complained about a maintenance worker who left the city and sold his house to someone from the ultra-Orthodox community. "Moved out of town. He sold his house to the guys with the big hats and the curls too. So, you know, everybody’s undermining the progress we’re trying to make here in town," he was heard saying in the recording.
The lawsuit was filed by Paul Oliveira, the former assistant superintendent of schools who worked in the district for over 20 years. He claims that the mayor, the president of the school board and the superintendent intentionally discriminated against Jewish candidates and actively sought to exclude ultra-Orthodox individuals from positions within the education system.
According to the recording, Armstead and his colleagues were specifically looking for job candidates of African-American or Haitian descent instead of Jews.
Oliveira alleges he was marginalized and criticized for his performance due to his opposition to the mayor's policy, which led to his taking medical leave for stress and anxiety, ultimately resigning due to a "hostile environment."
The lawsuit notes that while efforts to recruit a diverse staff are commendable, "the mayor and others had a very different agenda—namely, an antisemitic and illegal recruitment plan to prevent Linden from being 'taken over' by Jews."
Despite less than 3% of Linden's residents identifying as Jewish, the town has become home to a growing ultra-Orthodox community over the past 20 years, and synagogues and yeshivas have been established by various Jewish groups. Due to high housing prices in New York, many ultra-Orthodox families found Linden to be a more convenient and affordable alternative.
The Satmar Hasidic community commented on the allegations, saying, "These are shocking allegations made against a mayor who's now running for a congressional seat. The lawsuit reveals his opposition to employing Jews and offensive remarks about religious attire. There's no place for this discrimination in our society."
Rabbi A.D. Motzen, the national director of state relations for Agudath Israel of America, an organization representing the ultra-Orthodox Jewish community, posted on his X account, "Shameful, blatant anti-Semitism. The mayor of Linden and the school district leadership are collaborating to discriminate against Orthodox employees to prevent them from 'taking over' the city? How many civil rights violations can you count in this story?"
Armstead denied the allegations, claiming they were lies told by a disgruntled employee who was fired for his performance. "Everyone is welcome here in Linden," Armstead said. "I don't care if you're Jewish, Black, White, or Latino. We get along well in Linden." Armstead claimed he doesn't remember the recorded conversation and called the allegations "a complete pile of garbage."