Our Bureau
Washington, DC
South Asian Americans are living through an unprecedented rise in hate and discrimination, with community members reporting harassment, threats, and violence at record levels even as members of Congress themselves are targeted with racist attacks questioning their loyalty to the country they represent. In response, Indian American Impact convened five of the six South Asian Members of Congress and nine state and local South Asian elected officials yesterday for a closed-door roundtable on Capitol Hill to align on a collective response.
The roundtable kicked off Impact’s national listening tour, bringing Members of Congress and elected officials directly into South Asian communities to hear what people are experiencing. Today, Impact holds the tour’s first stop in Norcross, Georgia, with U.S. Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi, Virginia Lt. Gov. Ghazala Hashmi, and South Asian elected officials from across Georgia.
Featured voices included:
- U.S. Representatives Raja Krishnamoorthi, Ami Bera, Pramila Jayapal, Suhas Subramanyam, and Shri Thanedar
- Jay Chaudhuri, North Carolina State Senator
- Vin Gopal, New Jersey State Senator
- Kannan Srinivasan, Virginia State Senator
- Ranjeev Puri, Michigan House of Representatives Minority Leader
- JJ Singh, Virginia House of Delegates
- Dr. Suleman Lalani, Texas House of Representatives
- Dr. Darshana Patel, California State Assemblymember
- Rachna Sizemore Heizer, Fairfax County Braddock District Supervisor
- Nina Ahmad, Philadelphia City Councilmember
- Manjusha Kulkarni, co-founder of Stop AAPI Hate
- Chintan Patel, Executive Director of Indian American Impact
Why it matters
According to Stop AAPI Hate, 48% of South Asian adults in the U.S. experienced race-based harassment in 2025, a number that has only grown as anti-immigrant rhetoric has escalated from online spaces into mainstream politics. Hate crimes against Sikhs and Hindus specifically rose even as other categories declined, and ICE data show South Asians have seen the sharpest rise in arrests, detentions, and deportations of any Asian subgroup under the current administration, with deportations up 14-fold.
The incidents are impossible to ignore. Rep. Nancy Mace publicly attacked Reps. Pramila Jayapal and Shri Thanedar by name saying the naturalized citizens serving in Congress make clear “every single day their loyalty is not to America.” A man tore an Indian flag outside Frisco, Texas City Hall while chanting anti-India slurs at a far-right rally. A Florida city councilmember called for the deportation of “every Indian” and later attacked Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi by name. An Indian American man was beheaded in Dallas. Candidates and elected officials from the community have increasingly become targets themselves, facing slander and harassment simply for running for and serving in office.
Chintan Patel, Executive Director of Indian American Impact, said:
“Our communities are living in fear, and too many of us have been personally targeted simply for who we are. Yesterday, South Asian leaders from across the country came together to say clearly that this needs to stop, to share what we’re experiencing in our communities, and to lay out what we’re going to do about it. Impact is making the safety and wellbeing of our communities a priority, and we look forward to launching a national listening tour to hear directly from communities across the country as we build this response together.”
U.S. Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi said:
“Today’s roundtable brought together South Asian leaders from across the country to confront the rise in hate, harassment, and violence our communities are seeing and focus on what we can do about it. This is about protecting South Asian Americans, but it is also about making clear that no American should be made to feel they do not belong because of where they were born, how they worship, or what their name sounds like. That is why I have been working to strengthen our response to hate crimes, including through the Hate Crimes Commission Act, so we can better understand what is driving this hate and prevent violence before it happens.”
U.S. Rep. Ami Bera said:
“I was proud to join South Asian leaders from across the country for an important conversation about the rise in hate, harassment, and violence affecting our communities. We must work together at every level of government to stamp out hate, strengthen prevention efforts, protect vulnerable communities, and ensure perpetrators are held accountable.”
U.S. Rep. Pramila Jayapal said:
“I thank Indian American Impact for bringing so many voices together today for an important roundtable on growing incidents of hatred and violence against Indian Americans and South Asian Americans. It was incredibly informative to hear from community leaders and elected officials across the country about what they’re seeing in their communities and hearing from their constituents. We need to do more to combat this rising hate, including regulating Big Tech platforms that have become cesspools of hateful rhetoric, as well as ensuring that hate crime data is disaggregated so we can fully understand the scope and scale of the problem. I will continue to work on this in Congress and am grateful to have partners in this fight like Indian American Impact.”
U.S. Rep. Shri Thanedar said:
“Anti-South Asian sentiments and threats of violence have surged since President Trump’s inauguration, leaving South Asian communities across the country vulnerable and fearful. From detaining a 20+ year U.S. green card holder for over two months for using a phone without paying in 1999 to ICE targeting South Asian individuals for unjust arrests and deportations, the administration’s treatment of South Asians is unacceptable. We have to come together as a community and say enough is enough. I’m proud to be working with Indian American Impact to fight this rise in hate.”
U.S. Rep. Suhas Subramanyam said:
“I was glad to join elected officials across the country to discuss South Asian hate. We have seen a distressing increase in AAPI hate in acts of vandalism, violence, and hateful rhetoric on social media. We must all come together regardless of party or background to call out and condemn South Asian hate in all forms.”
North Carolina State Senator Jay Chaudhuri said:
“In North Carolina, we’ve seen mosques and temples vandalized and heard from advocates who are genuinely afraid just to show up and speak at public meetings — that fear is exactly why I will be introducing the Hate Crimes Prevention Act for a fifth consecutive session, expanding protections, adding real data collection, and funding law enforcement training. Thank you to Impact for convening today’s roundtable and giving South Asian legislators a platform to align on solutions, including speeding up FEMA security grant reimbursements and pushing local law enforcement to make hate crime data collection mandatory. You shouldn’t have to risk your safety to advocate for your community — I’ll keep bringing this bill back until that’s no longer true in North Carolina.”
New Jersey State Senator Vin Gopal said:
“I want to express my sincere gratitude to Indian American Impact for convening this roundtable to address such a critical issue. I join leaders across the country in strongly denouncing the escalation in harassment and violence that the AAPI community is experiencing here in New Jersey. American values are standing up against hatred of all kinds.”
Virginia State Senator Kannan Srinivasan said:
“As the first Indian-American immigrant elected to the Virginia General Assembly, I know firsthand how deeply these rise in hate incidents impact our families. Representing a community in Loudoun County that is home to tens of thousands of South Asian Americans, I stand with Impact and my colleagues in Congress and statehouses nationwide to demand real legislative action that keeps every neighbor safe and protected, no matter their background.”
Virginia Delegate JJ Singh said:
“I appreciated the opportunity to join Members of Congress and community leaders to discuss ways we can support the AAPI community. As a member of the Virginia House of Delegates, serving a district with a significant AAPI population, I’m proud to stand up against hate. Thank you to Impact for having me.”
California State Assemblymember Dr. Darshana Patel said:
“It was powerful to sit down with congressional colleagues and state and local elected officials from across the country who understand, in a very personal way, what South Asian communities are experiencing right now. What struck me most was the shared urgency — hate doesn’t stay confined to one community, one faith, or one state, and neither should our response. We left this conversation more aligned on practical next steps: stronger data-sharing across every level of government, sustained support for the community organizations doing this work on the ground, and accessible ways for people to report hate and get help. This is exactly the kind of coordination we need — because combating hate in all its forms takes all of us, working together.”
Texas State Representative Dr. Suleman Lalani said:
“Our community should not have to prove its Americanness every time someone uses our name, faith, accent, or immigration story to question whether we belong. South Asian Americans are not guests in the American story. We belong here, and we will not be intimidated out of our voice, our dignity, or our place in this country.”
Fairfax County Supervisor Rachna Sizemore Heizer said:
“I’m grateful to be part of this important conversation. Hearing leaders from across the country share the hate their South Asian constituents have faced, along with our own similar stories, was heartbreaking, but reinforced that we are strongest when our communities stand together. I look forward to working with South Asian elected officials to ensure our communities are heard, our data is disaggregated beyond ‘Asian,’ and the unique challenges facing South Asian women are also intentionally recognized and addressed.”
Philadelphia City Councilmember Nina Ahmad said:
“Recent murders of two South Asian delivery drivers within a month of each other have stunned the community in Philadelphia. While law enforcement investigates whether these were hate crimes, the South Asian community is once again reminded of the ratcheting up of hostility against us, which is being openly stoked by some elected officials. I am grateful to Impact for bringing together South Asian Members of Congress and other elected officials to discuss proactive measures we could all take to address this toxic political climate and rising anti-immigrant rhetoric impacting our communities.”
Manjusha Kulkarni, co-founder of Stop AAPI Hate, said:
“Stop AAPI Hate’s South Asian report, being released today, shows that hate against our communities remained high in 2025, with community members experiencing negative health impacts and a reduced sense of belonging as a result. Half of South Asians say they are feeling the effects of an anti-immigrant climate, including fears about being questioned over their status, limits on their public activities, and concerns about detention and deportation even when they have legal status. We look forward to continuing our work with Impact to raise awareness and curb the spread of hate against our communities.”
Indian American Impact is a national organization that elevates the voices of Indian and South Asian Americans to ensure that every level of government represents us and our values. Impact works to mobilize, engage and elect South Asians in an effort to build a world in which all Americans have the opportunity to thrive.