Special Message from HfHR Executive Director Sunita Viswanath
Sunita Viswanath, HfHR Executive Director
Refusing to Cede One Inch: Lessons from Selma and the Struggles Ahead
I keep reminding myself that the overwhelm we feel right now is not an accident. It is by design.
In just a few short weeks, this new U.S. administration—fueled by the unprecedented influence of Hindu American figures like Tulsi Gabbard, Kash Patel, and Usha Vance—has pledged to ethnically cleanse Gaza, rolled back protections for immigrants and trans communities, and launched attacks on core democratic institutions. And yet, this chaos did not emerge from nowhere. We must be honest about the failures of previous leadership, which left so many disillusioned that they welcomed drastic change, no matter the cost. That cost is now evident: a democracy in peril, lives in danger, and hope stretched thin.
Even glimmers of hope—such as early signs of de-escalation in Ukraine—have faded into the shadows of wider geopolitical instability. It’s a reminder that the global fight for peace and justice is more fragile than we’d like to believe.
And still, we persist.
We persist because we are not powerless.
We persist because this is our dharma—rightful action regardless of the outcome, regardless of the consequences.
Earlier this month, I had the profound honor of traveling with my fellow Co-Founder, Raju Rajagopal, to Selma, Alabama for the 60th anniversary of the Bloody Sunday marches. We joined faith leaders, civil rights elders, and grassroots organizers to walk across the Edmund Pettus Bridge—ground that once ran red with blood, now vibrating with the footsteps of generations still fighting for voting rights and racial justice.
Our weekend in Selma was filled with unforgettable moments:
Sitting in strategy meetings at the Southern Poverty Law Center, where we discussed how the far-right is evolving—and how our solidarity must evolve with it.
Bearing witness to the Freedom Flame Awards, where civil rights giants like Opal Lee and the late Medgar and Myrlie Evers were honored.
Feeling deeply moved by a quiet gesture: I wore a keffiyeh all weekend long, honoring the late Dr. King’s call to global solidarity and his principled opposition to wars of empire. Many people came up to thank me, recognizing the shared struggle between Selma and Gaza, between Black liberation and Palestinian freedom.
Sunita and Raju, HfHR co-founders at the Edmund Pettus Bridge
At the Jubilee, Raju and I were embraced by The Workers Circle (an American Jewish nonprofit organization that promotes social and economic justice, Jewish community and education), who marched the same streets in 1965 and continue, like us, to believe that faith is not a cloak for comfort but a call to courage.
We emerged from Selma reminded that the fight for justice is long, sacred, and deeply interconnected. Dr. King’s vision of the beloved community resonates deeply with the Hindu concept of vasudhaiva kutumbakam—the world as one family. It is not just a poetic vision. It is a moral obligation.
As Hindus for Human Rights, we walk in that lineage. We refuse to let our Hindu faith be weaponized. We stand for a vision of Hinduism rooted in ahimsa, truth, and equity—not caste hierarchy or religious nationalism.
But the threats we face today cross every border, every faith line, every identity. If we are to build true justice, we must connect racial justice, immigrant rights, women’s rights, trans rights, caste annihilation, and the fight against religious nationalism—here and everywhere. The far right is increasingly multiracial and multifaith in appearance, a strategy meant to confuse and co-opt. Our resistance must be genuinely multiracial and multifaith in spirit, heart, and action.
Not taking the risks required to defend civil rights and democracy dishonors those who came before us—the martyrs of India’s freedom struggle, the foot soldiers of Selma, and the political prisoners locked away for standing on the side of justice: from Mahmoud Khalil to Umar Khalid and so many others. We cannot speak their names and stay silent in the face of repression.
In this moment of global unraveling, what can we do?
We can organize.
We can support one another.
We can learn from movements past and present.
We can show up—as Hindus, as human beings, as people of conscience.
At HfHR, we are doubling down:
Expanding our local chapter organizing
Deepening our policy advocacy in Washington
Standing in global solidarity with all those under attack—from students and journalists to political prisoners and entire communities erased by war and bigotry
But we cannot do this alone.
Please donate to Hindus for Human Rights today. Your support—especially in moments like these—helps us stay strong, speak louder, and build the inclusive, courageous future we know is possible.
We left Selma with this message echoing in our hearts:
The fight is not over.
The responsibility is ours.
And the time to act is now.
In faith and solidarity,
Sunita Viswanath
Executive Director, Hindus for Human Rights