The state of Georgia, in a historic move, has proposed a bill to formally recognise Hinduphobia and anti-Hindu prejudice. If the bill gets passed, Georgia will become the first US state to formally introduce legislation to recognise Hinduphobia. The Senate Bill 375, which was introduced by a group of Georgia state senators, seeks to define Hinduphobia explicitly and include it under laws which prohibit discrimination based on religion, colour, caste, or natural origin.
In a post on X, the Coalition of Hindus of North America (CoHNA) said, “We are proud to work closely with Senator Shawn Still on this important bill and thank him along with Senator Emanuel Jones, Senator Jason Esteves, and Senator Clint Dixon for supporting the needs of the Hindu community in Georgia and the United States.”
The bill will enable law enforcement and other agencies to consider Hinduphobia while cataloguing such discrimination and taking appropriate action.
The post further reads, “SB 375 builds upon the important work that we started in April 2023, when Georgia became the first state to pass a County Resolution condemning Hinduphobia and anti-Hindu bigotry while celebrating the positive contributions of Hindus in Georgia and beyond.”
Earlier, the Georgia Assembly also took the lead in the United States by passing a resolution condemning Hinduphobia.
As it condemned Hinduphobia and anti-Hindu bigotry, the resolution emphasised that Hinduism is one of the world’s largest and oldest religions. It has over 1.2 billion adherents in over 100 countries, and encompasses an array of diverse traditions and belief systems with values of acceptance, mutual respect, and peace.
(With agency inputs)
