A Hindu-Jewish Partnership

Key Findings:

DEI (Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion) programs in academia have failed to represent and protect Jews and Hindus. Rajiv Malhorta, founder of Infinity Foundation, suggests the two groups form a partnership in order to preserve the safety and dignity of their communities. 

The author quotes Democratic and Harvard University donor Bill Ackman’s X thread regarding DEI: “...DEI was not about diversity in its purest form, but rather DEI was a political advocacy movement on behalf of certain groups that are deemed oppressed under DEI’s own methodology.” 

Jews and Hindus often fall under the “not oppressed” category, as they are perceived as “model minorities” due to their financial and academic success in the US. For instance, the average income of over 100k is at 48% for Hindus, and 40% for Jews. In academia, 85% of Hindu-Americans are college graduates, and 59% of Jewish Americans are college graduates. In both categories, Jews and Hindus outperform other minorities, and on account of their successes, are seemingly unworthy of protection and recognition under DEI.

The author draws similarities between the two cultures, pointing out that historically, both have tended to be internally driven, focusing on nurturing their own faiths and communities rather than expanding outwards. They have both been subjected to conversions and crusades throughout history as well. In addition, Jews and Hindus are essentially fighting the same ideological warfare they have fallen victim to throughout history. The author states– “In academia, antisemitism and Hinduphobia both draw from Marxist models that take aim at the Jewish and Hindu national projects, particularly vis-à-vis their relationship to the Muslim populations in their respective homelands.” Both minorities have been subject to Islamic imperialism, which is ironically unrecognized by on-campus progressives, as their point of view tends to focus only on the “Western version” of imperialism. 

Referred to as “an intellectual iron dome”, the author argues that these plans of action could ensure a future of protection for these two civilizations, as well as help combat the “regressive movement against merit” that academia and larger society are now faced with. 

Named points of action that Jews and Hindus should take in order to form a partnership:

-Both communities should interact more frequently in order to learn more about one another. 

-Jewish and Hindu students and donors should pull away from institutions that don’t reward merit-based work and that stifle free speech. 

-The establishment of a think tank specifically meant for the allyship of these two groups.

-Pioneering AI based research that will help to understand and counterattack Hinduphobia and antisemitism online and beyond.