The Stranger is God
Mandirs Stand With Immigrant Communities
GET INVOLVED
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GET INVOLVED /
Across the country, immigrant communities—including many members of the Hindu American community and other South Asian diaspora communities—are facing increasing fear, uncertainty, and hostility as the U.S. government pursues a cruel and inhumane anti-immigrant crackdown.
Dating back to the original sanctuary movement of the 1980s (and even earlier than that), houses of worship have always had a crucial role to play in defending immigrants from attacks—and Hindu mandirs are no exception!
Jagat Shiromani Temple, Amer, Jaipur
As Hindus, we are guided by the sacred teaching of Atithi Devo Bhava — “be one for whom the stranger is God.”
That’s why HfHR is launching this critical new campaign, calling on Hindu mandirs across the country to stand with immigrants and take meaningful steps to keep their congregations and communities safe.
We’ve put together a comprehensive resource guide — The Stranger is God: A Guide to Protecting Immigrant Communities for Hindu Mandirs — which contains important information about what rights mandirs have as houses of worship and the ways in which they can take action on this important issue.
Read the Guide
In the weeks and months to come, we’ll be sharing this guide with as many mandirs as possible around the country to make sure that they know their rights, are connected to important resources, and feel empowered to take meaningful action to support immigrants and keep their communities safe. If you want to get involved with this outreach campaign—especially if you are a member of a mandir congregation or have any other sort of personal connection to a mandir in your community—fill out our interest form today!