Do democracies need gulags? An Invitation to the Indian Gathering in Houston

— by Punya Upadhyaya, Co-founder, Hindus for Human Rights

NOTE: THE HINDUS FOR HUMAN RIGHTS BLOG IS A SPACE FOR A HEALTHY EXPLORATION OF IDEAS PERTINENT TO OUR MISSION. THE VIEWS AND OPINIONS EXPRESSED IN THIS BLOG ARE THOSE OF THE AUTHOR AND DO NOT NECESSARILY REFLECT THE OFFICIAL POLICY OR POSITION OF HINDUS FOR HUMAN RIGHTS.

Prime Minister Narendra Damodardas Modi has had (another) international coup – President Donald Trump, will be the first US President to attend a rally for a non-US leader in the US. The two have much in common (authoritarianism, Islamophobia, comfort with violence, Tweetmania, bad economics) and there are crucial differences. NaMo is self made, has a real ideology, is already on a second term, and supervising a growing (albeit fracturing) economy and society.

As these leaders of the erstwhile free world meet – in front of a raucously enthused group of over 50,000 (mostly) Indians – there will be a few hardy souls giving voice to many voiceless people. And in this spirit, we would invite the Prime Minister, the President, and all of us to reflect on the need for a humane and value driven approach to the gulags that have been built and scaled across our nations and the world. 

Hindu sage and philosopher Ramana Maharshi

As the Maharishi says above – hate is not “proper”. This is important – we invite simple rectitude, not high morality – just basic kindness and propriety. The context for this invitation is the large amount of pain that our societies are experiencing – and the choices we make that lead to pain and sorrow.

In India, I would focus on three areas of pain. First, the open-air prison that is Kashmir, where in addition to political spaces, all places of worship have also been shut down. Barbed wire blocks streets, helicopters zoom around with officials, and children are arrested and hurt. Second, internment camps are being set up for over 1.9 million people in the North East – much of it based on bad data and faulty ideology. Third, there is the ongoing problem with policing efforts that disproportionately target the poor, marginalized, and relatively disempowered (Dalits, Muslims, women, etc). 

In the US context again I look at three areas of pain. First are the direct ongoing illegal invasions of Muslim countries and the support for many dictatorships where people are killed or imprisoned in large numbers with no due process. Second, we have the mass incarceration of children in cages and families being separated at the Mexican border. And then the long running trend of mass incarceration, killings of minorities, and violence throughout the “justice” system.

One reason that many offer to defend these approaches is the “rule of law” – which we can agree is incomplete. We know that laws are applied unequally and arbitrarily – so there is another agenda here – one where we pick and choose who is legitimate, who is “us”, who matters. And our great teachers tell us a simple truth – All of us matter.

What happens when we see God in everyone? As Hindus, we ask all our leaders to search their souls to act in ways that are evocative of the Divine spirit that animates all of us. We do not believe that these leaders are uniquely responsible for societal pain. In India the Congress has led brutality in Kashmir, supported the Assam and north-east “cleansing” program, led violence in Punjab and against “Naxalites” as well as the 1984 genocidal violence in Delhi - as well or badly as the BJP (Ayodhya 1992, Godhra 2002). In the US, mass incarceration is a Democratic party program, and Nobel winner President Obama killed more innocents with drones and deported more immigrants than President George W Bush. These are systemic and social issues and we call upon leaders to lead and pull us to our higher values.

When these two cultures meet, with the enthusiasm and power of a joyous group, we invite you to:

• Reflect on the human and divine need for peace and offer freedom to those unjustly incarcerated

• Acknowledge the human imperative for dignity and treat all of us as valid people not call some illegal or terrorist or Naxalite to dehumanize us

• Feel the pain of the Earth, our Mother, and act in ways that will help Her nourish all her children while we take steps to lessen Her pain

May God/dess bless all the leaders and their families.