Coerced Religious Conversion
Religious conversion is when someone is groomed or coerced into leaving one's religion for another.
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Convertors often seek to cause doubt in the persons existing beliefs.
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Overwhelm the person with a large volume of evidence.
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Draw the person away from their own community and family.
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Introduce the person to a pre-trained community network that will provide a fake sense of belonging and security. The trained community will make the person feel special by using words like “pure", "sinless”, “revert”, etc. during the conversion process.
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Encouraging the person to rebel against their family in order to disrupt the family atmosphere, gradually removing the person from their family security and connections. At this point often the victim will seek to leave the secure family unit if they are legally able to.
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Belittle the Hindu Dharma.
Helpline and Support
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Increased isolation and refusal to come to social/family events without reason.
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Subtle or drastic changes, especially change in friendship circles.
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Lack of connection with family or increasing secrecy. This can include bringing home religious texts or garments of another religion, dating, or lying about where they are spending their time and becoming more argumentative or imitated.
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Make an effort to be connected to young isolated or vulnerable people within your community and family.
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Be open to questions, rather than being defensive. When someone has doubts about Hindu Dharma, invite them to share their reasons and sources. Are their sources legitimate? Are their arguments based on the testimony of others?
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Be connected to your local Hindu community groups. If you think a young person or any individual may be at risk of being converted or struggling with their Hindu identity reach out to HSN.
Past Campaigns
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The Hindu community in the UK is facing a significant challenge in the form of grooming and religious conversion. These practices are causing upheaval within individuals and families, and they are having a negative impact on the community as a whole.
The Hindu Support Network (HSN) is a group that is working to address this challenge. They have initiated a campaign aimed at increasing awareness about grooming and religious conversion. The campaign focuses on recognizing the signs of these practices, as well as providing necessary support to those who have been affected.