As a supporter of the Coalition of Hindus of North America (CoHNA), I am writing to strongly urge you to vote NO on Senate Bill 509 (Office of Emergency Services: training: transnational repression)[1]. Despite its innocuous sounding name, as a California resident from the minority Hindu faith, I am deeply concerned that this bill has serious potential to harm immigrant-heavy communities like mine that are already under stress. In 2024, California hate hotline reported[2] that anti-Hindu hate was widely prevalent-second only to anti semitism in our state. And as you may know, we have seen multiple Hindu temples vandalized in California[3] - four in 14 months, under the guise of anti-India speech.
Here are my key concerns[4] with SB509:
1. Vague Definitions That Can Be Weaponized
SB 509 defines “proxies” of foreign governments with no clear criteria. This opens the door to baselessly labeling residents with immigrant roots, as "agents" of some government. Over the past few years, we have seen the trope of dual loyalty[5], ruthlessly wielded against Hindus and Indians who express pride in their heritage or ask for equal treatment. This bill would add the power of law to this dangerous pattern of profiling .
2. Presumption of Guilt for Some, Protection for Others
Section 1(d) implicitly protects so-called “dissidents”, while casting suspicion on those who speak out against hostility from the said dissidents. This creates a double standard. As American Hindus we risk being criminalized for demanding justice when our temples and community events are attacked - since most of these attacks in the past 3 years have been carried out under the guise of anti-India speech.
3. Misuse of Emergency Services
The bill unfairly tasks the California Office of Emergency Services—a disaster response agency—with developing training on international repression. This is far outside their mandate and distracts from real emergencies like fires, floods, and earthquakes.
4. Constitutional Overreach
SB 509 seems to intrude into issues of foreign policy and federal[6] concern. It is concerning to see plans to insert local officials into long standing international procedures like INTERPOL notices.
5. Redundant and Unnecessary Legislation
In a meeting with CoHNA, the Legislative Director for Senator Caballero has admitted that SB 509 introduces no new crimes—just like SB 403, which was vetoed by Governor Gavin Newsom for this exact reason. This bill creates a chilling effect on a law-abiding minority community without addressing any verified threat.
What California truly needs is protection for vulnerable communities facing real threats. Hindu Americans have experienced a sharp rise in anti-Hindu hate crimes, including repeated vandalism of Hindu temples[7] across the state (in fact, all over the country). This bill does nothing to address those crimes. It can only be used to potentially silence victims and shield the perpetrators masquerading as “dissidents.”
I urge you to vote NO on SB509 and ensure California remains a place where freedom of religion, speech, and civic engagement are protected for all communities.
Thank you for your attention to this important matter.
References:
1. https://legiscan.com/CA/text/SB509/id/3132019
2. https://calcivilrights.ca.gov/wp-content/uploads/sites/32/2024/05/2024.05-CA-vs-Hate-Factsheet.pdf
3. https://apnews.com/article/us-hindu-temple-attacks-hate-crime-california-36e29bdbec74816b02352afa0057c066
4. https://diyatvusa.com/new-transnational-repression-bill-in-california-sb-509-gets-pushback/
5. https://mondoweiss.net/2024/05/comrades-in-ethnonationalism-why-the-israel-lobby-is-supporting-u-s-politicians-friendly-to-indias-far-right/
6. https://www.congress.gov/crs-product/LSB10808
7. https://cohna.org/attacks-on-hindus-in-the-united-states/
