Even though terms like Model Minority Myth have permeated some mainstream conversations of the Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander (AANHPI) diaspora within the US context, there have been many hidden histories of the political behaviors in this diverse array of communities that are taking a larger presence in modern electoral and cultural landscapes. Within the South Asian diaspora, there has been a frightening history of far right extremism that has not given proper critical analysis nor translational awareness as the monolithic expectations of US capitalism, white supremacy, and other systems of oppression romanticize South Asian Americans as a favorite liberal-voting staple of the Democratic Party. This far right extremism manifests itself as Hindutva with varying ideological and structural arms reaching into South Asian populations’ upbringing not just in the subcontinent but across the world. Recently, far right-South Asian entities have claimed an epidemic of Hinduphobia where South Asian folks specifically of Hindu upbringing/affiliation have been under attack which seems reasonable in analysis until the darker background rationale for this discrimination claim underlies the fact that far right Hindu/South Asian organizations are resisting critique for Islamophobia, anti-Dalit violence, and other sociopolitical repression for various groups within the South Asian subcontinent let alone the intersectional biases that exist in the diaspora.

This workshop will investigate how this Hinduphobia claim arose including historical and systemic context while also shining light on how counter-organizing may look like to confront such bad faith engagement of social activist spaces and manipulation of the general public’s trust. Through a rotating mobile panel of organizers, we will explore the multiple dimensions of this layered manipulation by the far right Hindu nationalist groups so participants have an opportunity to assess questions/strategies.