In June, Tenzin Dorjee was unanimously elected as chair of the commission. Tenzin Dorjee, a Tibetan Buddhist translator and scholar, was unanimously elected in June as the chair of the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom. The independent, bipartisan commission reviews religious freedom violations around the world and makes policy recommendations to the [...]
Hawaii Governor David Ige on Buddhism and Politics in the Age of Trump
Governor David Ige — one of America's most prominent Buddhist politicians — on immigration, climate change, and compassion in governance. On November 6, Hawaii gubernatorial incumbent David Ige won a second term. He’s set to take on some unique challenges, as Hawaii is strategically positioned between the US and Asia and faces acute threats from climate change. In the past [...]
6 Buddhist Leaders Reflect on the US Midterms and What Comes Next
In the US midterm elections on Tuesday, the Democrats took control of the House and seven governorships while the Republicans strengthened their hold on the Senate. Six Buddhist teachers interpret the outcomes through the lens of Buddhist wisdom. Upaya and the Middle Way Rev. angel Kyodo williams After two impossibly long years of what seemed like daily offenses to the [...]
Buddhist leaders pen open letter encouraging Americans to vote
The letter urges Buddhists across America to "express your commitment and respect for the innate dignity and worth of all" by voting in the midterm elections on November 6. Nearly 130 Buddhists teachers and leaders have signed an open letter to Buddhists across America in an effort to increase voter turnout at polling stations this election season. The effort, Mindful [...]
Lodi Gyari, Dalai Lama’s top diplomat, dead at 69
Lodi Gyari, the former special envoy of the Dalai Lama, died on October 29 in San Francisco, aged 69. Gyari was the Dalai Lama’s chief diplomat in the United States and, later, China. Appointed the special envoy of the Dalai Lama in Washington, DC, in 1990, Gyari garnered widespread support for the Tibet cause in Washington. When he retired in 2012, the US Senate passed a [...]
Commentary: We Can Always Do Something
Karen Maezen Miller on the human courage reflected in Christine Blasey Ford. Last night I said a service, or chant, invoking compassion and healing for 150 victims of sexual assault. These are our daughters, sisters, mothers, sons, brothers, and, yes, mostly ourselves. After the convulsive end to Thursday’s Senate hearing, I felt like I’d been run over and left for dead. [...]
300 Buddhist teachers, leaders, and practitioners call for reunification of families at US–Mexico border
Approximately 2,000 children remain separated from their parents at the US-Mexico border On Friday, more than 300 Buddhist teachers, leaders, and practitioners across traditions sent out a letter addressing the U.S. Customs and Border Protection’s zero-tolerance immigration policy and asked for all separated immigrant families to be reunited. “We stand with leaders of other [...]
Now is the Time to Find Our Compassion
On Monday, 200 Buddhist teachers issued a statement calling for an end to the US government’s practice of separating migrant children from their parents. Lion’s Roar magazine deputy editor Andrea Miller talked to Tenku Ruff — president of the Soto Zen Buddhist Association, which created the statement — about what she hoped the letter would achieve. Andrea Miller: What can [...]
Congress weighs in on the Dalai Lama’s reincarnation
It seems that the United States Congress is suddenly interested in the Dalai Lama's next life. On April 25, a resolution affirming the Dalai Lama's right to reincarnate as he liked — cosponsored by Republican Senators Ted Cruz and Marco Rubio, along with Democratic Senator Dianne Feinstein — passed in the senate. The main purpose of the resolution was to acknowledge the [...]
Homeland Security prepares to expel 9,000 Nepali immigrants granted protection after 2015 earthquake
After June 2019, Nepali immigrants with temporary protection status may face deportation. The Department of Homeland Security will end special protections for Nepali immigrants, giving them a one-year grace period to leave the US before June 24 2019. The Nepalis were granted temporary protection status (TPS) after a 7.8-magnitude earthquake shook Nepal in April 2015, [...]
