Suhag Shukla, Executive Director, Legal Counsel, and co-founder of the Hindu American Foundation (HAF), and Sapreet Kaur, Executive Director of Sikh Coalition have been named among twelve “faith leaders to watch in 2017” by the Center for American Progress.

CAP says, “Shukla has positioned HAF as a strong voice in the national debate about the separation of church and state, consistently speaking out about issues of Hinduphobia and the rights of religious minorities. Prioritizing legal advocacy, HAF regularly weighs in on cases related to religious discrimination and accommodations. Educating the Hindu American community on their rights regarding religious liberty is a core part of this work.”

About Kaur CAP says, “Since starting as the Sikh Coalition’s executive director in 2009, Sapreet Kaur has transformed the organization into a large and visible civil rights organization that provides legal defense and advocates on issues of hate crimes, racial and religious profiling, safe schools, employment discrimination, and religious liberty.

@sikh_coalition national ED Sapreet Kaur

Shedding a light on the lesser-recognized faith, in 2013, Kaur was the first Sikh to speak at a Presidential Inaugural Prayer Service. In 2016, Kaur and her team launched the groundbreaking Sikh Project, a collection of photographs of diverse Sikh Americans that complicates the narrative and sparks conversation about what it means to be American.”

Other faith leaders recognized by CAP include: Amani Al-Khatahtbeh (MuslimGirl), April Baskin (Audacious Hospitality), Rev. Susan Chorley (Unitarian Universalist Urban Ministry/Exhale), Rev. Michael Curry (Episcopal Church), Rev. John C Dorhauer (United Church of Christ), Rev. Cedric Harmon (Many Voices: A Black Church Movement for Gay & Transgender Justice), Tamar Manasseh (Mothers Against Senseless Killing), the North Carolina clergy advocating for transgender rights, Pastors for Texas Children, and Rev. Allyson Robinson (the first openly transgender Baptist minister).