Why Progressive Hindus Took to the Streets Against Netanyahu at the UN

Sep 25

Written By David Kalal

PRESS RELEASE

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Hindus for Human Rights Co-Founder Arrested in Mass Protest Against Netanyahu at the United Nations

HfHR joined Jewish Voice for Peace’s nonviolent action calling for an end to U.S. arms and funding for Israel

New York, NY (September 25th, 2026) -- Hindus for Human Rights co-founder Sunita Viswanath was among the New Yorkers arrested Thursday, September 24th during a mass protest against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s visit to the United Nations. HfHR was one of the organizations supporting the action, led by our partners Jewish Voice for Peace. HfHR members also participated in other protests and a large march against Netanyahu’s visit.

Protesters occupied streets near the UN, chanting and singing as they demanded an end to the killing in Gaza and to U.S. arms and funding for Israel. Their calls included “Fund people, not bombs” and “Stop the killing, stop the bombs.” More than 100 people were arrested in the Jewish Voice for Peace action. Among those who participated were Susan Sarandon, Chelsea Manning, Pose actor Indya Moore, Linda Sarsour, Medea Benjamin, Aber Kawas, Brad Lander and New York City Councilmember Chi Ossé.

For HfHR, taking part was an act of satyagraha, the tradition of nonviolent resistance that India gave to the world and was popularized during Gandhi’s peace walk. Amid the extensive security surrounding the General Assembly, participants knowingly risked arrest to insist that Netanyahu’s arrival in New York could not pass without a public challenge, and that he must be held accountable in the eyes of the public for the crimes he committed on Gazans. The International Criminal Court has issued a warrant for Netanyahu’s arrest on allegations of war crimes and crimes against humanity.

HfHR had initially prepared to protest Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who appeared on a provisional list of UN speakers. Following HfHR’s protests against RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat’s visit to New York, the organization learned that India’s address would instead be delivered by External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar. We welcome Modi’s absence from the UN podium as a win for those who challenged the public promotion of Hindu nationalism in New York last month during Mohan Bhagwat’s controversial Madison Square Garden appearance.

Netanyahu’s visit demanded a response of its own. HfHR has repeatedly stood alongside Jewish, Palestinian and other partners calling for Palestinian freedom. On Thursday, that solidarity meant joining New Yorkers who were willing to put their bodies on the line. HfHR calls for an end to the killing and bombing in Palestine, Lebanon, the Golan Heights, and Iran, and an end to U.S. arms, funding, and political support for Israel’s military campaign.

Rev. Peter Cook, a longtime HfHR ally and co-founder of Faith Beyond Religious Nationalism, also joined the protest. Cook was previously denied entry to India while traveling with a Christian delegation seeking to meet Christian communities there. His work now brings progressive people of different faiths together to confront religious nationalism within their own traditions and across communities.

That work continues Thursday, October 1, from 4 to 6 p.m. at The Riverside Church, where Cook, Viswanath and other faith leaders will take part in A New Approach to Interfaith Dialogue: Truth-Telling, Confession, Repentance & Shared Principles. The first conversation will examine Hinduism and its distortion by Hindu nationalism, as part of a broader effort to build solidarity against religious nationalism in all its forms. A reception will follow. Event details and registration.

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Press contact and interview requests:
David Dasharath Kalal, Communications Director
david@hindusforhumanrights.org

HfHR can connect journalists with its leaders, organizers, scholars and interfaith allies to discuss the protest and the connections between Palestinian freedom, opposition to Hindu nationalism, and other struggles for human rights. They can speak to why these issues matter to Indian American and Hindu American communities, and how relationships across faiths help communities confront injustice committed in their own names while standing together against it.

Hindus for Human Rights (HfHR) is an education and advocacy organization rooted in the values of satya (truth), nyaya (justice), and shanti (peace). We work to advance human rights for all by opposing caste, Hindutva, religious nationalism, racism, and every form of bigotry justified in the name of faith.

With affiliates around the world and chapters across the United States, HfHR brings together secular and religious Hindus—as well as allies of every background—to build a pluralistic future grounded in dignity and equality. We pursue this mission through policy advocacy, public education, interfaith partnerships, and cultural work that lifts up liberatory traditions within Hindu thought.