Leaflet by Leaflet, a Few Aging Activists Fight India’s Tide of Bigotry https://www.nytimes.com/2024/05/28/world/asia/india-activists.html
As politicians stoke religious hatred online, these veterans of social causes deliver their messages in person: “Talk to each other. Don’t let anyone divide you.”
As Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his deputies have vilified the country’s minorities in a yearslong campaign that has escalated during the current national election, the small band of aging activists has built bridges and preached harmony between religious groups... More than three dozen human rights defenders, poets, journalists and opposition politicians face charges, including under antiterrorism laws, for criticizing Mr. Modi’s divisive policies, according to rights groups..... “Despite a crackdown, they are refusing to cow down, leading them to hold placards, distributing fliers, to revive a message that once was taken for granted.”
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The space for activism may completely vanish, Ms. Verma said, as his party becomes increasingly intolerant of any scrutiny.
For now, she said, activists “are, sadly, just giving proof of our existence: that we may be demoralized, but we are still alive. Otherwise, hatred has seeped so deep it will take decades to rebuild trust.”