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1. Factsheet: Sadhvi Rithambara

Author:
Bridge Initiative Team
Publication Date:
05-2024
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
The Bridge Initiative, Georgetown University
Abstract:
Sadhvi Rithambara is a senior leader in the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), and is the founder of Param Shakti Peeth, a “charitable organization” in India, which also has two sister organizations in the US, Param Shakti Peeth Of America Foundation and Param Shakti Peeth Of America East Coast (PSPA). Rithambara is a leading figure in the Hindu nationalist movement and her anti-Muslim speeches played a central role in the demolition of the Babri Mosque in the 90s. Leaders of PSP in the US are also affiliated with far-right Hindu nationalist organizations.
Topic:
Islamophobia, Far Right, Charity, Hindu Nationalism, and Sadhvi Rithambara
Political Geography:
South Asia, India, and United States of America

2. Factsheet: Holy Land Foundation

Author:
Bridge Initiative Team
Publication Date:
01-2020
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
The Bridge Initiative, Georgetown University
Abstract:
The Holy Land Foundation (HLF) was the largest Muslim charity in the U.S. before it was selectively targeted by the Bush administration less than three months after the 9/11 attacks. After years of litigation—including a mistrial and constitutionally-dubious prosecutorial tactics—the federal government eventually secured criminal convictions against HLF and five of its officers/employees, including Shukri Abu Baker, Ghassan Elashi, Mohammed El-Mezain, Abdulrahman Odeh, and Mufid Abdulqader. The Holy Land Foundation case was paradigmatic for the federal government because they viewed it as a high-profile, post-9/11 counterterrorism financing case. The case has also been used by anti-Muslim activists and organizations to smear Muslim American leaders and organizations as ‘terror-linked.’
Topic:
Counter-terrorism, Civil Rights, 9/11, War on Terror, Charity, Muslims, and Holy Land Foundation (HLF)
Political Geography:
North America and United States of America