Vaishnava Center for Enlightenment
Encyclopedia
The Vaishnava Center for Enlightenment (founded 1994) is an organization based in East Lansing, Michigan
. It is a signatory to a wide range of public resolutions and petitions and works towards creating awareness on civil rights and humanitarian issues. Shrikumar Poddar was one of three founding trustees of the Bharatiya Temple of Lansing, who established the temple as a non-profit organization in January 1982.
The center opposed revisionist edits proposed by two extremist Hindu organizations in California's textbook curriculum (see Californian Hindu textbook controversy
), and has been active in interfaith dialogue .
East Lansing, Michigan
East Lansing is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan. The city is located directly east of Lansing, Michigan, the state's capital. Most of the city is within Ingham County, though a small portion lies in Clinton County. The population was 48,579 at the time of the 2010 census, an increase from...
. It is a signatory to a wide range of public resolutions and petitions and works towards creating awareness on civil rights and humanitarian issues. Shrikumar Poddar was one of three founding trustees of the Bharatiya Temple of Lansing, who established the temple as a non-profit organization in January 1982.
Activities
The centre has worked on issues such as:- Urging Congress to support civil liberties
- Ending the genocide in DarfurDarfurDarfur is a region in western Sudan. An independent sultanate for several hundred years, it was incorporated into Sudan by Anglo-Egyptian forces in 1916. The region is divided into three federal states: West Darfur, South Darfur, and North Darfur...
, SudanSudanSudan , officially the Republic of the Sudan , is a country in North Africa, sometimes considered part of the Middle East politically. It is bordered by Egypt to the north, the Red Sea to the northeast, Eritrea and Ethiopia to the east, South Sudan to the south, the Central African Republic to the...
. - Meeting the demands of the Narmada Bachao AndolanNarmada Bachao AndolanNarmada Bachao Andolan is social movement consisting of tribal people, adivasis, farmers, environmentalists and human rights activists against the Sardar Sarovar Dam being built across the Narmada river, Gujarat, India....
and halting the construction of the Maheshwar and NarmadaNarmada Dam ProjectThe Sardar Sarovar Dam is a dam on the Narmada River near Navagam, Gujarat, India. It is the largest dam and part of the Narmada Valley Project, a large hydraulic engineering project involving the construction of a series of large irrigation and hydroelectric multi purpose dams on the Narmada River...
dam projects , - Promoting harmony and dialogue between Hindus Muslims, as well as opposing communalism and human rights violations.
The center opposed revisionist edits proposed by two extremist Hindu organizations in California's textbook curriculum (see Californian Hindu textbook controversy
Californian Hindu textbook controversy
A controversy in the US state of California concerning the portrayal of Hinduism in history textbooks began in 2005. Christian, Jewish, Muslim and Hindu groups complained that their religions were in part incorrectly or negatively portrayed....
), and has been active in interfaith dialogue .