Lt Governor of California Asks Education Board For Proper Depiction of Hinduism in Text Books

• The Lieutenant Governor of California, Gavin Newsom, has written to the California State Board of Education asking them to properly alter their prejudiced and wrong portrayal of Hinduism and India in the social science textbooks.
• The academicians strengthened his claim by writing another letter demanding the same thing.
• The Hindu American Foundation, too, was seen writing to the Board with similar requests in mind.

July 13,2016: After the issue was raised last week by Tulsi Gabbard, the Hindu American Congresswoman, the activists rooting for proper representation of Hinduism in California textbooks have another shot in the arm.

Gavin Newsom, the Lieutenant Governor of California has recently written to the California State Board of Education and has demanded a proper representation of Hinduism in the school text books. He feels that Hinduism has largely been misinterpreted in the text books with unnecessary trampling with history to make it look like a vicious religion in comparison to other faiths.

"I strongly encourage you to consider the perspective of young Indian-American and Hindu-American students and whether the proposed framework accurately and fairly portrays that students' history. If you agree that it does not, I hope you will consider making the appropriate modification," California Lt Governor Gavin Newsom's letter to the State Board read.

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This stand by the Lt Governor has largely encouraged and is also appreciated by the Hindu American parents who have been persistently raising their doubts about this issue for a long time, now. Clearly, growing up away from home, they did not want their children to get a wrong impression of their religion.

Apart from them eminent academicians wrote letters to the Education Board of California about the maltreatment of the subject of Hinduism in the social science books as well. They had found certain portrayals of Hinduism in the books to be historically inaccurate and false.

"We should all be working for a representation of India and Hinduism that is consistent with the manner in which other civilisations and religions are portrayed and is age appropriate, rather than singling out India and Hinduism for especially critical treatment," the academicians had written in the letter.

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In addition the Hindu American Foundation has also iterated their dismay against the issue by writing a letter to the board.

The State Board of California is scheduled to have its last meeting later this week and will have a discussion to alter the discourses on Hinduism and India in the social science text books.

-News compiled by Atreyee Sengupta, an intern at NewsGram

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