VTMBH Article: Body
U.S. law enforcement agencies are beginning to understand Muslim practice. They have realized that the end of the month of Ramadan is a period when Muslims give to charity. The agencies are making a systematic effort to reach out to mosques all over the United States and distribute information that list Muslim charities suspected of having ties to militants. The message to mosque goers is this: do not contribute money to organizations on our list. If you do so, even in ignorance of the nature of such organizations, you are criminally negligent.
There are other religious communities in the United States whose activities are not looked at by law enforcement authorities. Hindus living in the United States are allowed to give money to the Rashtriya Swayamsewak Sangh (RSS) through the India Development and Relief Fund (IDRF). Neither the RSS nor IDRF are names that appear on any list tacked on the walls of a temple in the United States.
A recent study done by Indian academics living in the United States, The Economics of Hate, has reported that the U.S.-based IDRF has raised $5 million for the RSS and other members of the Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP) family of fascist Hindu organizations. This family includes the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), the current ruling party in India. RSS and VHP are fascist organizations that regularly and openly call for violence against Muslims in India.
In the current election campaign in Gujarat, the Indian state experienced a widely reported anti-Muslim pogrom organized by the ruling BJP government in March of this year, and the incumbent chief minister is running on a virulently anti-Muslim election campaign. Such are the people receiving money raised by IDRF in the United States.
IDRF was founded in Maryland in 1989. It is a tax-exempt foundation. The Economics of Hate says that the IDRF claims that it is a charity and raises funds from companies as well as individuals in the United States. The authors of the report have written to 10 corporations in America, beseeching them to not fund IDRF. Some of these organizations include: Cisco Systems, Sun Microsystems, Oracle and Hewlett Packard. Cisco Systems contributed $70,000 to IDRF in 1999.
IDRF claims that it works in rural development and in alleviating urban poverty in India. It also claims that it is an organization that believes in secular values. The report shows that these claims are false with evidence from IDRFs tax returns. Monies are being sent to RSS and other members of the VHP family. The director of IDRF, Bhisma Agnihotri, is a former member of the RSS.
There are other religious communities in the United States whose activities are not looked at by law enforcement authorities. Hindus living in the United States are allowed to give money to the Rashtriya Swayamsewak Sangh (RSS) through the India Development and Relief Fund (IDRF). Neither the RSS nor IDRF are names that appear on any list tacked on the walls of a temple in the United States.
A recent study done by Indian academics living in the United States, The Economics of Hate, has reported that the U.S.-based IDRF has raised $5 million for the RSS and other members of the Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP) family of fascist Hindu organizations. This family includes the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), the current ruling party in India. RSS and VHP are fascist organizations that regularly and openly call for violence against Muslims in India.
In the current election campaign in Gujarat, the Indian state experienced a widely reported anti-Muslim pogrom organized by the ruling BJP government in March of this year, and the incumbent chief minister is running on a virulently anti-Muslim election campaign. Such are the people receiving money raised by IDRF in the United States.
IDRF was founded in Maryland in 1989. It is a tax-exempt foundation. The Economics of Hate says that the IDRF claims that it is a charity and raises funds from companies as well as individuals in the United States. The authors of the report have written to 10 corporations in America, beseeching them to not fund IDRF. Some of these organizations include: Cisco Systems, Sun Microsystems, Oracle and Hewlett Packard. Cisco Systems contributed $70,000 to IDRF in 1999.
IDRF claims that it works in rural development and in alleviating urban poverty in India. It also claims that it is an organization that believes in secular values. The report shows that these claims are false with evidence from IDRFs tax returns. Monies are being sent to RSS and other members of the VHP family. The director of IDRF, Bhisma Agnihotri, is a former member of the RSS.