Recent revelations have highlighted troubling practices by certain Christian evangelical groups accused of luring Indians to the United States to facilitate religious conversions. Concerns have also emerged regarding U.S. government funding being funneled to NGOs engaged in these activities, which, in some instances, may cross into human trafficking.
Reports indicate that some evangelical organizations exploit the vulnerabilities of economically disadvantaged and socially marginalized communities in India by offering various forms of assistance, such as visas, scholarships, job opportunities, and resettlement support. These offers often come with the expectation or pressure to convert to Christianity once individuals arrive in the United States.
A 2023 report by the South Asian Human Rights Watch documented that evangelical NGOs offered scholarships to approximately 500 students from rural and economically disadvantaged backgrounds in India. Of these students, about 150 (30%) reported mandatory participation in Bible studies and church services as part of the scholarship conditions.
In 2022, a case study involving 80 students from Bihar who were sent to Christian schools in the Midwest U.S. revealed that 55% of these students experienced coercion to convert to Christianity, with some being threatened with the withdrawal of their scholarships and housing if they did not comply.
The Global Labor Justice Alliance’s 2021 investigation found that evangelical groups facilitated job placements for over 1,200 Indian workers in various sectors in the U.S. Approximately 300 of these workers (25%) reported that their employment was conditional upon attending evangelical church services and participating in religious activities. In one instance, 250 workers from Tamil Nadu were promised jobs in the hospitality sector in Florida. Upon arrival, they were housed in a church-owned compound and required to participate in daily religious activities, facing threats of job termination if they refused.
Data from the Human Rights and Religious Freedom Coalition (HRRFC) in 2022 showed that at least 600 families from economically disadvantaged regions in India, such as Uttar Pradesh and Bihar, were resettled in the U.S. through evangelical organizations. Around 420 of these families (70%) reported feeling coerced into converting to Christianity as part of the resettlement process. The survey by HRRFC also highlighted that 85% of these families experienced intense pressure to adopt Christian practices and beliefs within the first year of their resettlement in the United States.
Adding to the complexity of these allegations is the issue of U.S. government funding being directed to NGOs involved in these controversial activities. Reports suggest that some of these NGOs, under the guise of providing humanitarian aid, are engaged in practices that could be classified as human trafficking.
According to a 2022 investigation by the Center for Public Integrity, U.S. government grants amounting to over $50 million were allocated to faith-based NGOs over five years, some of which have been implicated in coercive conversion practices and questionable resettlement activities. The same report identified that at least 10% of these funds were channeled to organizations that had documented cases of exploiting immigrants for religious conversion, raising serious ethical and legal questions.
A 2021 report by the Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons found that certain NGOs receiving U.S. government funding were involved in practices that met the criteria for human trafficking, including coercion, exploitation, and forced labor under the guise of religious conversion. In one high-profile case, an NGO receiving federal funds was found to have facilitated the illegal immigration of over 200 individuals from South India, subjecting them to forced labor and religious indoctrination in a remote compound in Texas.
The allegations of Christian evangelicals luring Indians to the United States for religious conversion, coupled with concerns about U.S. government funding of NGOs involved in potentially coercive practices, present a complex and multifaceted challenge. By addressing these issues through increased oversight, legal enforcement, and public education, both India and the United States can work towards ensuring that cross-border humanitarian efforts respect cultural diversity and uphold the principles of voluntary religious freedom and human dignity.
