The Indian American Muslim Council (IAMC) is the largest and oldest Indian Muslim diaspora advocacy organization in the United States. Established in 2002 and operating with 16 chapters across the US, IAMC has focused over two decades on defending human rights, advocating for democratic values, and championing core values of peace, justice, and pluralism for all communities in India and the US. These values have positioned IAMC at the forefront of the diaspora movement working to combat threats to democracy in both countries, with a particular focus on Hindu supremacy, its collaborations with global far-right and Islamophobic movements, and the harm it causes to vulnerable communities and democratic societies worldwide.
IAMC is a registered 501(c)(3) tax-exempt non-profit.
Our mission is to empower minority and marginalized communities through strategic advocacy for peace, pluralism, and social justice in India and the United States. We strive to protect the rights of the oppressed, amplify their voices, and promote equitable treatment for all.
Our vision is to fortify democracy and cultivate inclusive societies in India and the United States, where justice, mutual respect, and human dignity are paramount. Everyone can live free from discrimination and fear, enjoying equal opportunities and protections under the law. We are committed to building resilient communities, fostering understanding, and ensuring that human rights and social justice principles guide our actions and policies.
IAMC was founded by a small group of Indian American Muslims from various cities in the United States in the aftermath of the 2002 Gujarat pogrom, during which Hindu militant mobs massacred nearly 2,000 Muslim women, children, and men under the watch of then-Chief Minister Narendra Modi.
Deeply affected by the brutality inflicted on innocent Muslims, IAMC’s founders recognized that the pogrom stemmed from the legitimization of Hindu supremacist ideology at the government level, which emboldened its most radical supporters to act on their anti-Muslim hatred. They saw the necessity of creating a platform for Indian American Muslims to advocate for the rights and safety of their loved ones in India and to combat the harms of Hindu supremacy within the diaspora. Despite being a small group, IAMC made a significant impact from the start.
In 2005, just three years after its founding, IAMC activists played a crucial role in advocating with the George W. Bush administration to ban Narendra Modi from obtaining a U.S. visa due to his “severe violations of religious freedom” in Gujarat state.
IAMC engages in three main branches of work – Advocacy, Media, and Grassroots Activism.
Our Advocacy Team is engaged in outreach with U.S. government bodies and commissions, federal agencies, and members of Congress. IAMC holds frequent Congressional Briefings on Capitol Hill to educate staffers on key issues regarding the U.S.-India relationship, and regularly distributes educational materials to keep lawmakers informed on the ways Hindu supremacy impacts Indian-American constituents in the U.S. IAMC has also sent a number of delegations to the United Nations headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland, to advocate for Indian minority issues.
Our media team works to increase awareness among the general public about threats to democracy in India and the U.S. by publishing articles and op-eds, appearing for interviews on podcasts and radio shows, and releasing quarterly and yearly reports documenting human rights violations against Indian minorities and marginalized communities. We are frequently quoted and mentioned in both national and international media outlets.
Our grassroots activists and chapters are focused on raising awareness about Hindu supremacy at the local level, including through educational events, workshops, appearances at conventions, media outreach, protests, and meetings with elected officials at the city and state levels. Chapter leaders also work towards strengthening relationships with local human rights and civil society groups.
While IAMC is a Muslim-led organization, we understand that the rights of Indian Muslims are inseparable from the rights of all Indian minorities and marginalized communities. We work equally on issues concerning Christians, Dalits, Sikhs, and Kashmiris who face persecution and discrimination. We actively work to amplify voices and support organizations representing those communities. We are committed to promoting justice and equality for all communities.
Leaders of India’s ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Hindu supremacist groups, and government backed online disinformation cells have repeatedly used these accusations to attack IAMC’s credibility and deflect criticism of the very real human rights abuses occurring in India on a daily basis.
These accusations are based on the Hindu supremacist claim that Indian Muslims have dual loyalty to Pakistan. This claim is dangerous, dehumanizing, and Islamophobic, and it implies that Indian Muslims are not “real” Indians – a notion that regularly drives Hindu supremacist calls for a ethnic cleansing and genocide of Muslims.
IAMC stands as an independent voice, representing the issues of individuals and communities affected by the ideologies of hate. We have no affiliation with the government of Pakistan or any Pakistani groups, and we receive no funding from entities outside the United States. All our support comes from donations within the United States.
Our credibility as an independent human rights organization has been bolstered through our years of work with U.S. government agencies. IAMC has also been cited and presented as a case study in official reports produced by bodies such as the U.S. Department of State.
Furthermore, advocating for the rights of the vulnerable is neither anti-India nor anti-Hindu. The “whataboutism” frequently employed by Hindu supremacists serves only as a distraction to diminish the severity and brutality of the oppression faced by Muslims and other minorities under a Hindu supremacist government.
IAMC has built a wide network of partnerships and alliances to combat Hindu supremacy. We regularly advocate with and provide updates to key government agencies such as the US Department of Justice, Department of State, Homeland Security, the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF), and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
We also frequently collaborate with prominent human rights organizations worldwide, including Amnesty International USA, Human Rights Watch, 21 Wilberforce, International Christian Concern, Jubilee Campaign, the Humanism Project, and several others.
Our key partners in the fight against Hindu supremacy include Equality Labs, Hindus for Human Rights, India Civil Watch International, Dalit Solidarity Forum, Federation of Indian American Christian Organizations of North America, and others.
IAMC is also a proud core member of Savera: United Against Supremacy, a platform that brings together a multiracial, interfaith, anti-caste coalition of organizations and activists to fight supremacist movements within the Indian American diaspora.
IAMC is always welcoming new volunteers. The easiest way to get involved with us is to fill out our volunteer form here.
We have chapters in major cities across the country, including Atlanta, Austin, the Bay Area, Boston, Chicago, Dallas, Houston, Nashville, Raleigh, Richmond, San Diego, and Seattle; as well as chapters in Florida, Maryland, Michigan, New Jersey. To get connected with a chapter near you or to learn how you can start a new chapter in your area, contact media.info@iamc.com.
If you don’t have the capacity to be an active volunteer but still want to keep up with IAMC events and activities, you can subscribe to our mailing list, where you can receive event announcements, registration links for webinars, petitions, and Action Alerts that call for grassroots mobilization. You can also help us in our efforts by amplifying our content on X, Instagram, and Facebook, as well as subscribing to our Youtube channel. Your views, likes, comments, and shares help us reach international audiences and increase our impact.