Zachary Horton

By Rutvi Dattani

Zachary Horton is Assistant Professor of English and Media Studies at the University of Pittsburgh^[1]^[2] as of August 2022. According to his university profile, his academic research primarily focuses on the relationship between scale, ecology, and technological mediation.

According to his bio and Academia profile, he has published no books, papers or research pertaining to Hindus, the rights of Hindus, the impact of or relationship between Islam and Hinduism / Hindutva or the Indian Government.

In 2021, he along with Hibatullah Akhundzada, the supreme leader of the Taliban, co-signed a letter supporting the "Dismantling Global Hindutva" Conference, as an academic and scholar and made the allegation:

"the current government of India [in 2021] has instituted discriminatory policies including beef bans, restrictions on religious conversion and interfaith weddings, and the introduction of religious discrimination into India’s citizenship laws. The result has been a horrifying rise in religious and caste-based violence, including hate crimes, lynchings, and rapes directed against Muslims, non-conforming Dalits, Sikhs, Christians, adivasis and other dissident Hindus. Women of these communities are especially targeted. Meanwhile, the government has used every tool of harassment and intimidation to muzzle dissent. Dozens of student activists and human rights defenders are currently languishing in jail indefinitely without due process under repressive anti-terrorism laws."^[3]