Hindu American Antani seeks his spot in US Congress, wishes to write history

Niraj Antani, Ohio’s first Indian American State Senator, announced his campaign for Congress from the state’s second congressional district. He is the first Hindu and Indian American State Senator in Ohio history and the youngest Hindu & Indian American elected official in the country. Antani, known for his active GOP involvement since his teen years, seeks to represent the predominantly Republican district. “I was a state representative in the Ohio House of Representatives for six years and was elected at the age of 23, which made me the youngest Hindu American state or federal elected official in American history. I am really proud of this,” he said.

Sworn in as a senator on January 5, 2021, Antani mentioned that he wanted people of Ohio to achieve their American Dream. Talking about the ideal life that resonates with the term ‘American Dream’ he said, “The idea of an American dream is individual to every person. But I do believe there are three basic tenets to it. First would be somewhere good to live. Number two, is a good job that can pay for the basic needs of the family, to be able to provide for one’s family and put food on the table is the adage. The third would be to keep your family safe.”

“I think there are a variety of versions of the American dream, and everybody’s American dream is a little bit different, but there are some core tenets, and I think for many, those core tenants do not exist or are under attack,” he added.

Antani has proudly introduced Senate Concurrent Resolution 6 to condemn Hinduphobia and anti-Hindu bigotry in the state of Ohio. Talking about how this idea took shape, Antani said, “I introduced this because Hindu Americans are under attack from radical Islam coast to coast in the United States. There are Gandhi statues being vandalized, Hindu temples being vandalized and we also saw the Indian consulate in San Francisco being attacked recently. There are members of Congress like Ilhan Omar and Rashida Tlaib speaking against Hindu Americans and I see this as a huge problem. To condemn all these actions, I have introduced this resolution.”

Senator Antani has also introduced a resolution in the Ohio Senate to declare October as ‘Hindu Heritage Month’ to recognize the community’s contributions to the US state. “Designating October as ‘Hindu Heritage Month’ in Ohio will give Hindu Americans in our state great recognition for our contributions to our state,” Antani said.

He added, “I give credit to many Hindu American activists, in this case Renu Gupta, who approached me with the idea. I don’t know if any state has done it through their legislature to make it official for every year. But certain governors have declared it for the current year, which is a great move. I commend them for doing this and I’m grateful to play a small part in this recognition.”

As a fiercely pro-Trump Republican, Antani condemns the policies by the Biden government particularly on domestic and foreign fronts. He said, “I feel President Biden’s policies have been disastrous for the US on the domestic front, certainly with rising inflation and rampant crime, but also on a foreign policy front — if we look at what’s happening around the globe. Russia invaded Ukraine. That did not happen under President Trump. It happened under President Biden. Hamas attacked Israel. That did not happen under President Trump. That happened under President Biden. These are significantly troubling and disastrous things. I believe we need good world leadership and when President Trump was in office, he provided four years of peace for the US and our allies.”

Furthermore, Antani discussed the impact of anti-Semitism and the importance of standing in solidarity with the Jewish American community.

“I feel anti-Semitism is not just in America, it’s present across the world, and it should all be condemned. We as Hindu Americans should all stand in solidarity with the Jewish American community against all anti-Semitism, no matter where it comes from. It just happens to be the case that right now it is coming from radical Islam groups like Hamas.”

“I believe Hamas is not the only radical Islamic group. Radical Islam does not just want to attack our Jewish friends. That’s where they’re starting. So, it is our Jewish friends who are under attack now. And we should do everything in our power to support, help, and defend as well as protect them. But we should also remember that such elements will set their sights on us next. So we must all stand together in this no matter which community or place we come from,” he added.

As an individual of Indian descent making his mark in the world of politics, Antani thinks being an Indian American has been a boon to him and he wants to continue working to empower the community in every way possible.

“The Indian American community which obviously as every community in America, started off as an immigrant community has come a long way. My family largely came to the US in the 1970s and worked hard to achieve success. I believe there is no other community like the Indian American community. No other community came here with nothing, and now is the most educated, the most financially successful community in the United States. And that is a testament to our Indian American community. Indian Americans, on average, employ more people than the average American. The Indian Americans have higher wages than the average American, pay more taxes than the average American, and provide more education than the average American, on and on and on. And so, absolutely, I think. Our community has been a boon to the United States.”

Talking about his life outside politics, he said, “Politics can be an all consuming endeavor. I have a life outside of politics. But people don’t get access to it very often in the sense — I’m very busy, but that’s okay, right? Politics is a calling. We’re doing great things. And the fact that people want to invite me places is a good thing. That when they wanting you to show up, that’s probably a bad thing. But listen, I’m like any other 32 year old ABCD (America Born Confused Desi), he chuckles. I just happen to have a pretty cool job,” he concluded.