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USA Today
07-06-2025
- Politics
- USA Today
Republican lawmaker slammed for 'hateful' post about Sikh congressional chaplain
Republican lawmaker slammed for 'hateful' post about Sikh congressional chaplain Rep. Mary Miller of Illinois, in a since-deleted post, misidentified a Sikh man who was serving as the guest chaplain in the U.S. House of Representatives as Muslim. Show Caption Hide Caption Kenyan Muslims pray for Gaza as they celebrate Eid Al-Adha As Muslims around the world celebrated Eid Al-Adha on Friday in Nairobi Kenya, the gathered crowds prayed for their fellow Muslims in Gaza. Africanews - News WASHINGTON – A Republican congresswoman from Illinois is under bipartisan criticism after saying that a Sikh man should "never have been allowed" to serve as the guest chaplain in the U.S. House of Representatives. In a since-deleted post on X, Rep. Mary Miller wrote on June 6 that it was "deeply troubling that a Sikh was allowed to lead prayer" in the U.S. Capitol. "This should have never been allowed to happen," she wrote. "America was founded as a Christian nation, and I believe our government should reflect that truth, not drift further from it." Initially, Miller misidentified the man, Giani Surinder Singh of the Gurdwara South Jersey Sikh Society, as Muslim. Her X account later edited the post to correctly describe him as Sikh before deleting the comment entirely. Muslims are adherents to Islam. Sikhism is a different religion, the fifth largest in the world. It was founded in the Punjab region of South Asia. There are roughly 750,000 Sikhs in the United States, according to the Sikh Coalition. A spokesperson for Miller did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Miller's remarks swiftly prompted backlash from Democrats and Republicans. "A Sikh prayer on the House floor—followed by a Christian prayer one week and a Jewish prayer the next—doesn't violate the Constitution, offend my Catholic faith, or throttle my support for Israel," wrote Rep. Nick LaLota, R-New York, on X. "Live and let live." Rep. David Valadao, R-California, also said he was "troubled" by Miller's post. Democratic leadership denounced Miller's comments, too. "It's deeply troubling that such an ignorant and hateful extremist is serving in the United States Congress," Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries wrote on X. "That would be you, Mary." Zachary Schermele is an education reporter for USA TODAY. You can reach him by email at zschermele@ Follow him on X at @ZachSchermele and Bluesky at @
Russia Today
19-04-2025
- Business
- Russia Today
Trump ‘doesn't know' what Congo is
US President Donald Trump has said he has no knowledge about the Democratic Republic of Congo (DR Congo), but claims that many illegal immigrants in the US come from there, Africanews reports. He made the comments on Thursday during a meeting with Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni at the White House. Trump alleged that prisons in a number of countries, not only in South America but also other continents, had released inmates who were now entering the US. Apparently referring to the DR Congo, Trump said many individuals are arriving from the African nation, adding, 'I don't know what that is, but they came from the Congo and all over the world they came in.' The DR Congo is the second-largest country in Africa, with more than 100 million people. The Republic of the Congo borders the DR Congo. This is not the first time Trump has made controversial comments about African countries. In March, he quipped that 'no one has ever heard' of Lesotho, a country in southern African which received $8 million in aid from the previous administration for international development projects. In response, Lesotho's foreign minister, Lejone Mpotjoane, stated that the government was shocked and offended by the remark. He said it was 'quite insulting' and 'disappointing' for the leader of a country that maintains a diplomatic mission in Lesotho to speak in such a manner. 'I'm really shocked that my country can be referred to like that by the head of state,' Mpotjoane was quoted as saying by Reuters. Earlier in the month, the US imposed a new set of reciprocal tariffs on imports from nearly 90 countries. A temporary 90-day pause and a reduced 10% tariff were announced later. The new tariffs affected 20 African countries, including Madagascar (47%), South Africa (30%), and the DR Congo (11%). Lesotho was hit with the highest tariff rate of 50%.
