KEMAH, Texas – There are two large signs prominently displayed by the front door and cash register of the Dairy Queen restaurant in the 1100 block of State Highway 146 in Kemah. Another, much smaller sign, is hanging up by the drive-thru window and a fourth sign sits out front by the parking lot.
The signs show several pictures, religious and political leaders and flags but one of the signs specifically mentions Hinduism.
“Racism is the foundation of Hinduism,” said Mohammad Dar, owner of the restaurant.
Dar is Muslim and insists his messages are not opinion but fact. He said along with ice cream he wants to serve up some education to his customers and that’s all he’s trying to accomplish with his signs.
“This the facts, anybody has a problem, I challenge them to prove me wrong,” he said. “I do not practice racism but human equality."
Dar told KPRC he serves 200 customers a day. These signs have been up for the last six months and he says only a few people have been offended.
About 1 percent, he estimates.
“This is not offensive, this is educational,” he said.
But the people at the Sri Meenaksi Temple Society in Pearland see it differently. In a statement, they said, “Hindu philosophy allows one to respect other faiths and accommodate a broad perspective, rather than claiming monopoly of the Divine presence. We believe in ONE God, who can be worshipped in its numerous manifestations, just as water can be in the form of ice, snow, steam or flowing river. Truth is one, but the wise call it by different names.”