nelsonlj@whitman.edu WALLAWALLA, WASHINGTON, November 05, 2005: A class at Whitman college, Wallawala, Washington is investigating religious intolerance in the US. Students are learning that practice of religion is not a free as one might expect in a country that supposedly guarantees religious freedom under the constitution. Students are required to submit papers on a “particular form of intolerance.” Student Laura…
www.nashvillecitypaper.com NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE, October 20, 2005: The Hindu Cultural Center of Tennessee is building two new wings to the Ganesha Temple, 521 Old Hickory Blvd. in Bellevue. Construction of the US$4 million project, which will include a new education building, duplexes and parking spaces, is expected to start next spring. “We started planning the extension about 14-15 months ago,” said…
www.endcorporalpunishment.org The last time HPI reported on this subject was February of 2005. Since that time the following developments have taken place. Hungary announced an amendment to the Child Rights Act that came into effect on January 1, 2005. The amendment asserts, “the child’s right to respect for his/her human dignity and that children may not be subjected to corporal…
www.wired.com USA, October 11, 2005: Two prestigious American universities have been given grants from the government and privately to delve into the paranormal. The news release explains what is happening at the University of Arizona psychology laboratory, “Researchers at the innocuously named Human Energy Systems Laboratory — with a total annual budget of about $500,000 — have been busy asking…
www.nzherald.co.nz AUCKLAND, NEW ZEALAND, October 31, 2005: Thousands thronged Auckland’s Aotea Square as the city put its best hennaed foot forward for the Hindu festival of lights yesterday. But a shadow fell over Diwali celebrations, after a series of explosions in the Indian capital, New Delhi, left more than 50 people dead. Many of the victims were women and children,…
www.asiansinmedia.org October 12, 2005: While many East Indian Americans feel insulted by the Simpsons Asian Hindu character Apu, Rohin Francis, a medical student and author of this article, puts a different spin on the perception of Apu. Francis explains, “I think Apu is a positive character for Asians – particularly those living outside India. One could legitimately claim that Apu…
United News India LUCKNOW, INDIA, October 30, 2005: After schools and NGOs, a temple here has joined a campaign urging people to spend more on helping the poor than bursting crackers this Diwali. The Hanuman Temple located on the banks of river Gomti and which has a large following, has started distributing pamphlets to devotees requesting them to shun the…
timesofindia.indiatimes.com PUNE, INDIA, October 25, 2005: (HPI note: The following report details how the Catholic Church in India is making clever adjustments to make itself more palatable to Indians. This continues a process begun hundreds of years ago when some of the first Catholic missionaries to the country pretended to be like Hindu sadhus. The external adaptations, however, were not…
www.courant.com HARTFORD, CONNECTICUT, USA, October 29, 2005: (HPI note: the following article is one of several that are appearing in the mainstream USA press to explain Deepavali, or Diwali) Growing up in Mumbai, India, Beena Pandit remembers the sights and sounds of the Hindu holiday of Diwali, a time of celebration that marks the year’s end. The house was filled…