Coalition of Hindus of North America (CoHNA) Advocates for Hindu American Community at Capitol Hill Event

The Coalition of Hindus of North America (CoHNA) organized the 'National Hindu Advocacy Day on the Hill' event at the US Capitol Hill, drawing attention to the challenges faced by Hindus in the United States. The event shed light on rising violence against religion, Hindu phobia, caste laws, and academic bias.

Lawmakers, including Congressman Rich McCormick, Sri Thanedar, Buddy Carter, Congressman Thomas Keane, and Hank Johnson, both Republicans and Democrats, attended the event to show support for the Hindu American community. Congressman McCormick praised the hard-working and peaceful three-million-strong US Hindu community for their contributions to the nation and society.

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During the event, Anita Joshi, Associate Policy Director of the Hindu American Foundation, and Rajiv Pandit, Board Member, showcased resources used to educate lawmakers and Hindu American communities.

The programme also addressed a recent development in Seattle, where the city became the first in the United States to prohibit caste-based discrimination by integrating it into anti-discrimination statutes. Congressman McCormick strongly condemned caste discrimination, considering it racist and divisive, stating that it should never exist in America.

Indian American Congressman Shri Thanedar expressed his support for the Hindu community, emphasizing the importance of religious freedom and opposing hate, bigotry, and attacks against any religion. Thanedar, who formed the Hindu caucus in the US Congress, attended the event as the sole Indian American lawmaker.

Speakers, including Salvatore Bobonus from the University of Sydney and the Indian Century Roundtable, highlighted the presence of caste-related politicization in America. They discussed the disputes over caste reservations and the classification of Scheduled Castes, bringing attention to the growing challenges faced by Hindu South Asians.

CoHNA has been actively involved in educating stakeholders about Hinduism and advocating for the Hindu American community through events like the Hindu Advocacy on the Hill. The organization has conducted various congressional briefings addressing the issues impacting the community.

The event highlighted that caste hierarchies exist not only among Hindus but also among Sikh, Muslim, Buddhist, and Christian communities. However, the focus has been on casteism among Hindu South Asians in the US, where approximately 5.4 million people (about twice the population of Arkansas) of South Asian descent reside.

According to Pew data from 2015, there are 2.23 million Hindus in the United States, making them the fourth-largest religious group in the country. Hinduism, along with Sikhism and Jainism, belongs to the Indic or Dharmic religious tradition, which has a significant presence in the US. The event aimed to address the growing challenges faced by Hindus and other South Asian communities in the country.

Prominent COHNA member, Pushpita Prasad, expressed concerns about the potential profiling and discrimination faced by Hindus in California, emphasizing that it could perpetually affect future generations. Pew data also revealed that Hinduism has the highest retention rate among Indian Americans, with 80% of those raised Hindu continuing to identify with the religion as adults.