Press Release

ADL Welcomes First Hindu Elected To The House Of Representatives

New York, NY, January 4, 2013 ... The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) today welcomed the newly-elected Rep. Tulsi Gabbard (D-HI), the first Hindu elected to the U.S. House of Representatives.

Representative Gabbard took her oath on the Bhagavad Gita, a sacred Hindu text, as she joined the 113th Congressional class.

Barry Curtiss-Lusher, ADL National Chair, and Abraham H. Foxman, ADL National Director, issued the following statement:

Representative Gabbard’s election to the House of Representatives heralds another new page in the growing religious and ethnic diversity of Congress and a step forward toward a time when “the people’s House” reflects the diversity of America.

In addition to giving elevating attention to the concerns of Hindu Americans and the persecution of Hindu communities abroad, Rep. Gabbard’s election is in the best traditions of American pluralism, religious liberty, and inclusiveness that defines our nation at its best.

The Anti-Defamation League, founded in 1913, is the world's leading organization fighting anti-Semitism through programs and services that counteract hatred, prejudice and bigotry.