US Chapter's Webinar: The Rise of Religious Nationalism in the World's Two Largest Democracies

Description

This IARF US Chapter webinar compares the rise of religious nationalism in India and the United States. Nikhil Mandalaparthy of Hindus for Human Rights explains the development of Hindutva, its distinction from the diversity of Hindu traditions, and its contemporary political expression through the BJP and Narendra Modi. He discusses anti-Muslim violence and rhetoric, lynchings, discrimination against minorities, Kashmir, diaspora polarization, disinformation and efforts by progressive Hindus to oppose religious nationalism from within their own tradition.

Rev. Will McGarvey examines white Christian nationalism in the United States, its links with white supremacy, Christian identity politics, revisionist accounts of American history, church-state conflict and the political religious right. The discussion compares how sacred symbols, historical myths and majoritarian identity are mobilized for political power, while also exploring resistance through interfaith solidarity, civil rights, constitutional religious freedom and religious arguments for pluralism. The Q&A addresses colonial legacies, education, religious texts, Kashmir, Christian Zionism and strategies for countering nationalist movements.