Thread by @AudreyTruschke

US-based Hindu nationalist groups intersect with numerous other right-wing ideas and ideologies.

Some examples here, drawn from this recent article: audreytruschke.com/hindu-right-us… (image if you want this all in one go). #Hindutva #rightwing #Republicans

First of all, basics --

Hindutva is a far-right political ideology.
Hindu nationalists are a politically defined group.
Don't confuse #Hindutva and #Hinduism.
Hindu nationalists have been part of American life for half a century.

America also has lots of other right-wingers...

A well-established connection are Hindutva links with Zionist organizations. This is in spite of the extensive documentation of Hindutva admiration for Nazis.

Hindu nationalist groups are also rather fond of attacking academics, a quintessentially right-wing activity.

Another specific connection is the Koch network, which is perhaps the most common source of threats to academic freedom in the US.

Koch folks have worked at Hindu nationalist organizations, including those who have led in anti-intellectual attacks.

Hindu nationalists also hang out at times with white Christian nationalists.

Think that's sort of odd? Well, it poses some interesting juxtapositions...

E.g., the Coalition of Hindus of North America (CoHNA), a relatively small Hindu Right organization, hosted an event in 2021 featuring congressman Drew Ferguson, a Georgia Republican who openly advocates that the United States was founded on Judeo-Christian principles.

In 2022, they held a similar event featuring Georgia Republican Andrew Clyde, who espouses similar stances on the non-separation of church and state

Both Ferguson and Clyde also supported the 2021 insurrection that sought to overturn the US election results.

And it wasn't just CoHNA. The executive director of the Hindu American Foundation, a larger and more influential far-right group, also spoke at the 2022 Clyde event.

Few Hindu Americans, right-leaning or otherwise, support the views of Clyde and Ferguson. So what gives?

The Hindu Right in the US is often willing to temporarily sacrifice other views and values in pursuit of right-wing alliances that, in these cases, supported a rather Republican-sounding narrative of alleging American intolerance of conservative groups.

A last example from this section of the article -- the Hindu Right held a huge event in 2019 to honor Modi, India's Hindu nationalist PM.

The event was well attended by Republican law-makers and shunned by Indian American lawmakers (except Krishnamoorthi of IL).

But wait, you say, Krishnamoorthi is a Democrat!

Yes, but he promotes far-right views regarding Hindutva and has ties with Hindu nationalist groups. I'll leave for another day a thread on #Democrats and #Hindutva ideology. That nexus works a little differently.

To close out on Hindutva and other right-wing connections in the US, there are other examples...

In the article, I cover overlaps between the Hindu Right and the Christian Right regarding yoga.

There are also Hindutva connections with white nationalists, like when Hindu nationalist groups and a former KKK grand wizard both endorsed Tulsi Gabbard.

Or, e.g., Hindus for Trump, which produced this image of Trump as a Hindu god (if you're offended, take it up with them).

I encourage everyone to continue educating themselves about the US-based Hindu Right, including the major groups, their key issues, and their far-right alliances.

Everything in this thread is drawn from this article:

audreytruschke.com/hindu-right-us…