New Report Exposes Hindu American Foundation’s Ties to the Far-Right

 New Report Exposes Hindu American Foundation’s Ties to the Far-Right

The report, jointly published by Political Research Associates (PRA) and the Savera coalition, sheds light on how the Hindu American Foundation has deployed the language of civil rights and minority representation to sanitize its far-right political agenda and its ongoing associations with Hindu supremacists and other far-right actors.

Press Contact: Koki Mendis, Director of Communications, Political Research Associates

k.mendis@politicalresearch.org

October 16, 2024 – A groundbreaking new report, jointly published on Wednesday by Political Research Associates (PRA) and the Savera: United Against Supremacy coalition, sheds light on the far-right associations and agenda of the Hindu American Foundation (HAF). Through its alignment with far-right actors and supremacist movements in the US, HAF plays a key role in spreading Islamophobia, casteism, and other forms of bigotry within Indian American communities with the aim of undermining solidarity between communities of color and pulling Hindu Americans toward an increasingly multiracial far-right.

The report, titled “HAF Way to Supremacy: How the Hindu American Foundation Rebrands Bigotry as Minority Rights,” finds that HAF’s messaging and advocacy throughout its existence has reflected a zero-sum approach to civil rights, in which “the civil rights and religious freedoms of Hindus are framed in opposition to, and at the expense of, those of other communities.” In attacking the extension of civil rights protections to caste-oppressed groups, spreading hateful stereotypes about Muslims, and working to shield the Modi regime from accountability, HAF has also found common cause with a constellation of other far-right actors. 

As the report shows, HAF’s right-wing alignment is no recent accident, but rather explained by its history. The project of a second generation of Hindutva activists who cut their teeth in older and more openly bigoted Hindu supremacist organizations, HAF sought to present a more palatable version of Hindutva that would be capable of garnering mainstream legitimacy. Nevertheless, it has maintained strong ties with Hindu supremacist organizations like the Hindu Swayamsevak Sangh (HSS) and the Vishwa Hindu Parishad of America (VHP-A), but has sought to keep them covert. 

Through this subterfuge, HAF sought to exploit a broader lack of awareness about far-right strands in the Indian diaspora to find space in mainstream American civil society, who invited HAF into their interfaith and multicultural coalitions under the assumption that they were including a legitimate representative of the Hindu American community. And yet, as its far-right record has accelerated, HAF has increasingly moved away from these very spaces, responding to their inclusion with exclusionary lobbying. As the multiracial far-right grows, it is imperative that US civil society recognizes the threat HAF presents to building a true multiracial democracy. 

QUOTES

 “The Hindu supremacist movement is a dangerous and increasingly influential force within an emergent multiracial Far Right in the United States,” said Tarso Luís Ramos, Executive Director of Political Research Associates. “The Hindu American Foundation has cleverly exploited the general lack of awareness in this country about Hindu supremacism to present itself as a civil rights organization. This report sets the record straight: HAF is a stalking horse for Hindutva and must be understood as an extension of the Indian Far Right.” 

“With this report, our third on the Hindu supremacist ecosystem in the United States, we have presented the most comprehensive treatment of how diasporic far-right networks are also a key part of the authoritarian movement in the U.S. This report is essential reading for anyone seeking to understand what the far-right is shaping up to be,” said Sunita Viswanath, Cofounder and Executive Director of Hindus for Human Rights. 

“The report clearly illustrates how HAF has facilitated hate-mongering and supremacist politics,” said  Chaitanya Diwadkar of Ambedkar King Study Circle. “Even as Hindu supremacists in India demonize minorities, in the USA, they advance their supremacist agenda in the very language of  minority rights. In doing so, they deny the existence of caste discrimination in the U.S., an issue that affects marginalized communities within the Hindu minority. Hindu supremacy is a significant threat to democracy and requires immediate attention at all levels.”

“Savera’s new report compiles evidence of what many South Asian and Muslim civil rights groups have known for a long time: that HAF rejects protections for caste-oppressed groups, aligns with a foreign regime’s efforts to target our Sikh siblings, and joins in the xenophobic demonization of Muslims. As Savera connects the dots between these harms and the new alliances the far-right is building, the world will know this too,” said Rasheed Ahmed, Executive Director of the Indian American Muslim Council.

Read the full report here.

Study & fight Hindu Supremacy: Activists & researchers fighting toxic Hindu Supremacy movement, rooted in Modi’s India but with ties to Far Right in Trump’s USA

(A write-up verbatim by Savera):

“(Here is) Savera/ICWI’s latest research report on HAF, which is the most influential node in the Hindu supremacist network in the US.

The report documents the extent of its harms against our communities, its record of lobbying for the Modi regime, and how it sought to keep its ties to the more unsavoury parts of the Hindu far-right intact but covert.

It’s a comprehensive report that we’ve worked on for years and I hope you will read it carefully! (My colleague Ram who coordinates the Savera team is cc-ed as well.)

The stakes of the report are also important because it details how our own civil rights spaces and the Democratic Party gave HAF a base from which to build power, by uncritically accepting its claims to represent a minority and PoC group. HAF’s hard shift to the right has shown how deep a miscalculation that is proving to be – and why we all need to work urgently to nip its influence in the bud.

But we can’t do this alone and really need your help! Here are some ways you can support us:

1. 1. Share a public message supporting us on social media. HAF is infamous for its litigation and use of troll armies and so getting public support for our campaign also serves as the primary form of safety for Savera.
   2. If you are connected to any organizations, urge them to sign our declaration on Hindu supremacy. We have over 130 signatories but want to reach many more organizations.
   3. Sign-up for our closed-door briefing on Hindu supremacy and the multiracial far-right, set to be held on November 18 at 3 pm ET, here. We will use it as a space to share our analysis in further detail, take in your insights and suggestions, and strategize for the months ahead
   4. And share the report with at least 8-10 organizers in your circles. Savera is also available to host trainings or workshop about Hindu supremacy within your own community/organization.”

 

 

© Savera - United Against Supremacy - 2024