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New York Times' Hinduphobia

Published on 23 July, 2014
New York Times' Hinduphobia

HAF Blog: New York Times' Fecal Load of Hinduphobia 

by Raman Khanna, M.D. 

Member of HAF's Executive Council

The New York Times ran a story on the crisis in India of open defecation on the front pages of its online portal on July 13, 2014. The issue tackled is an important one-according to the World Health Organization, half of the Indian population lacks access to functioning toilets, and at least in several India states, many relieve themselves outdoors despite having such toilets. This reality, in turn, exposes children to such a large load of infectious agents, from bacteria to worms, that they literally never grow to their full potential-even with adequate nutrition. It is inexcusable and humiliating for India that access to mobile phones, televisions and refrigerators has not been accompanied by better sanitation. The story could have been left at this. Yet to Gardiner Harris, the South Asia correspondent for the Times, open defecation alone wasn't enough-religion and culture had to be dragged into the story in as inflammatory a manner as possible. Witness these passages in the story: 

Open defecation has long been an issue in India. Some ancient Hindu texts advised people to relieve themselves far from home, a practice that Gandhi sought to curb. 

And then: 

In a little-discussed but surprising finding, Muslim children in India are 17 percent more likely to survive infancy than Hindus, even though Muslims are generally poorer and less educated. This enormous difference in infant mortality is explained by the fact that Muslims are far more likely to use latrines and live next to others also using latrines, a recent analysis found. So widespread housing discrimination that confines many Muslims to separate slums may protect their children from increased exposure to the higher levels of waste in Hindu communities and, as a result, save thousands of Indian Muslim babies from death each year. 

The first has just enough truth to it to hide significant distortions. The latter soft-pedals Hinduphobia as poetic justice. To the casual reader, the New York Times's South Asian correspondent has just asserted that India's Hindus are bigots with absurd beliefs about sanitation who are only getting what they deserve when their children die more often than the Muslims they oppress. Harris thus transports a sanitation issue onto a religious conflict frame with heroes and villains, in the process slandering a belief system and incorrectly identifying which challenges truly prevent moving from open defecation to indoor toilets in the Indian context. 

Click here to continue reading. 

 

Huffington Post: How the NYT Masks Hinduphobia with Science

by Aseem Shukla, M.D. 

HAF Co-Founder and Board Director 

The New York Times ran a story on the crisis in India of open defecation on the front pages of its online portal on July 13, 2014. The issue tackled is critical -- that according to some studies, up to half of the Indian population lacks access to functioning toilets and continues to relieve itself outdoors. This, the story reported, may be causing chronic gastrointestinal disease that causes children to suffer stunted growth despite access to adequate nutrition. It's yet another paradox in the India Rising story -- launching Mars orbiters and ranking second in the world for mobile phone users on the one hand and lagging embarrassingly behind in dealing with a most basic bodily necessity on the other. 

But Gardiner Harris, the South Asia correspondent for the Times, authored the story, and as is his wont, he provoked. So was Harris' story on Indian stooling habits an important story? No doubt. A tragic story? Indeed. Outrageous? Absolutely. But check out these passages in the story: 

Open defecation has long been an issue in India. Some ancient Hindu texts advised people to relieve themselves far from home, a practice that Gandhi sought to curb.

Click here to continue reading.

 

Huffington Post: Nose Deep in Their Own...Prejudice: Hinduism and The New York Times' Sewage Problem

by Vamsee Juluri, Ph.D.

Friend of HAF

What might have been an excellent piece of reporting on an important public-health concern in India has turned out instead to be one of the most absurd, far-fetched, and ugly pieces of Hinduphobic racism in journalism ever. 

After being told for several years now that Hinduism is to blame for everything in India from the gang rape of women to the mere questioning of Wendy Doniger's strange claims, The New York Times now reveals to us that it is "some ancient Hindu texts" that are at least partly responsible for unhygienic excretory practices and diseases in modern India. As further proof of this incredible thesis, we are also told that Muslim children have a better survival rate because they are discriminated against and forced to live in separate slums, safe from the Hindus' less-hygienic habitats. Even the opening line of the article evokes a picture of Hindu superstition, spelling out the sad story of a boy whose mother's attempts to ward off the "evil eye" have obviously failed to stop the disease from coming. 

The point of the article seems to be this: Hindus don't use toilets because it's against their religion, and it's spreading disease.

Click here to continue reading. 

 

Hindu Human Rights

Patheos: Preserving Human Rights Through Article 26 of the UN Declaration

by Suneeta Israni 

Former HAF Congressional Intern

As an educator of history, my students and I have made a conscious choice to use a critical and culturally responsive lens when evaluating the subject matter in textbooks and the classroom. I say "my students and I" because I have adopted a teaching philosophy in which I, the teacher, am considered an equal amongst my students and that together we can learn from each other and work together to solve problems. I have adopted this philosophy because this critical and culturally responsive evaluation and reflection will afford my students the knowledge and skills they will need later on in life to persevere through bullying and prevent discrimination.

Click here to continue reading. 

 

Take Back Yoga

Belief Net: Is Asana Religious?

by Sheetal Shah

Senior Director

Last week, I received an inquiry from a Christian theologian interested in showing that "the postures of Yoga" (asana) are directly tied to Hinduism and thus, cannot be easily incorporated into daily life by Christians. While the origin of yoga is undoubtedly tied to the Hindu sacred texts, the Vedas and Upanishads, I struggled with his idea of researching asana divorced from yoga in its entirety.

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HAF's Summer Interns 

HAF Blog: Heat, Humidity, and Hindu American Advocacy - My Summer in DC

by Tej Desai 

HAF Office Intern

It seems ironic to think that I didn't know much about HAF before this past winter break. I still remember just getting home from school and thinking about how I would spend my last semester of college when my grandfather told me about an internship with the Hindu American Foundation that he had just heard about. To be honest, I didn't even know who or what the Hindu American Foundation was. My parents told me to apply for the internship, and like any other college student looking for a job post-grad, I applied aimlessly. It's funny how that works though, because once I started doing my homework on the job and the organization, I fell in love with its mission and goals (apologies for the cliché).

Click here to continue reading. 

 

HAF Blog: My Summer of Hindu American Advocacy

by Rohith Reddy 

HAF Office Intern

I have been an intern with the Hindu American Foundation (HAF) since the beginning of June and am based in Washington, D.C., along with numerous members of staff. Thus far, my internship has certainly been interesting and enjoyable, but mostly it has been enlightening. I work with another intern, Tej Desai, where we are getting a well-rounded understanding of all of HAF's work. Some days we accompany Jay, Harsh, and occasionally Murali, to meetings pertaining to their areas of expertise. We are also independently working on several unique projects.

Click here to continue reading. 

 

Education

Huffington Post: History of Hindu India a Valuable Resource for Teachers and Parents

by Murali Balaji, Ph.D.

Director of Education and Curriculum Reform 

Teaching history continues to be one of the biggest challenges in school districts across America, as schools must often grapple with outdated standards and old and inaccurate textbooks. In addition, teachers can sometimes struggle transitioning to the most current pedagogical approaches.

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Indian 2014-07-23 13:58:03
It is more shameful that the commentators attacked a harmless article. rather than trying to rectify the mistake, they attacked the messenger. Indians claim that their forefathers were civilized when Eropeans lived caves. Let us build as many toilets as needed and come out of the shame.
These comments stinks!
Anthappan 2014-07-23 16:32:18
India government and corrupted politicians of India (old and current) completely abandoned the urban population and their needs. All the money is diverted to Swiss Bank. No education, no drinking water, no toilet for poor only rape and abuse for women, killing baby girls, and story goes unending. India government failed to meet the basic needs of Indian population living in rural area. Those who lived in Bombay know how men and women defecate in the open. Indian’s will shit on the street by watching their government launching space ship and rockets towards moon and mars. Indian’s boast about their traditions and thousands of year’s history while many of their brothers and sisters die not eating a full meal or not enough cloth to cover their nakedness. There is no dignity and value for human life in India. Indian organizations in USA should adopt what Gandhi did and that is boycotting all the ugly and useless politicians coming from India. It is shame for the Malayalee organizations hosting parties and welcoming even the rotten Punchayat memebrs and committee members of some cheap political parties. How can we hold our head up and fight against the articles like one published in New York Times or any other paper when there is truth in it?
മലയാളത്തില്‍ ടൈപ്പ് ചെയ്യാന്‍ ഇവിടെ ക്ലിക്ക് ചെയ്യുക