Reportage Politics

Alt-Reich

The unholy alliance between India and the new global wave of white supremacy

01 January 2018
In August 2017, acolytes of the “alt-right” in the United States held a rally in Charlottesville, chanting slogans such as “Jews will not replace us!” and carrying torches like those used at Ku Klux Klan rallies.
STEVE HELBER/AP PHOTO
In August 2017, acolytes of the “alt-right” in the United States held a rally in Charlottesville, chanting slogans such as “Jews will not replace us!” and carrying torches like those used at Ku Klux Klan rallies.
STEVE HELBER/AP PHOTO

IN A PHOTOGRAPH POSTED to Facebook in 2011, an American man named John Morgan stands on the banks of the Ganga in Varanasi, wearing a white dhoti. He smiles, and holds a small bag in his hand. The sun is setting over the river, into which, just moments earlier, he had scattered the ashes of his beloved cat. When the photo was taken, Morgan had been living in India for two years.

Several of his friends commented on the photo. “I didn’t know that you are inclined towards Sahajiya Vaishnavism. Traditional Gaudiya Vaishnavism sorts that path better,” one wrote.

“I’m interested in everything Vedic,” Morgan replied. “I’m not even certain that I’m really a Gaudiya Vaishnava, since I find the Sri Vaishnavas and even Advaita Vedanta fascinating.”

Carol Schaeffer is an independent writer and journalist covering the rise of the far-right around the globe. She has been based in New York, Belgrade, London and Paris, and can be found on Twitter as @ThenCarolSaid.

Keywords: caste BJP Hinduism Ravi Shankar Nazi Hindu right Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh Alt-right Arktos Islamophobia
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