A Black And White “Holi Against Hindutva”

The past few days have seen India engulfed in its worst communal violence in recent times. Violent incidents in the capital of India, Delhi during President Donald Trump’s India visit led to innocent, often poor people losing their lives and livelihoods.

The religious violence in Delhi last week has left the Indian student community in the US shaken.

In keeping up the spirit of a unified India and to show solidarity with peaceful protests in India, a student-led group from Yale University has called for demonstrations across the US on March 5 from 4 pm to 5 pm. The protest has been organized by Students Against Hindutva, a South Asian student activist group advocating progressive politics in India.

According to the organizers, the protest is currently set to take place on 21 university campuses across the US and will serve as collective messaging against the government of Indian PM Narendra Modi.

Shreeya Singh, founder of the movement says, “This fight is the most patriotic fight I have ever fought for, and I believe the diaspora must stand behind the protestors risking their lives day after day for India’s secular soul.”

On the demonstration plans the organizers say, "We will ask protestors to come to predetermined public spaces dressed in black (as opposed to Holi’s traditional white attire) and will supply only one colored powder for Holi - white."

"The goal of this symbolic use of black and white is to signify that we are not in celebration but condemnation of the Indian government’s actions."

List of universities that are coming out in support and holding the demonstrations:

Yale University, UCLA, Cornell University, UC Davis, Harvard University, Claremont Colleges, Princeton University, Dartmouth University, Brown University, Purdue University, American University, Bard College at Simon’s Rock, University of Pennsylvania, Northeastern University, UC San Diego, Columbia University, Wellesley College, University of Illinois, Chicago, Rutgers, Michigan State, and Duke.