By Sydney Byerly
The Indiana Citizen
May 28, 2026
Indiana Lt. Gov. Micah Beckwith said Americans should be given “permission to hate again” and called Islam a “demonic death cult” during a recent appearance on a conservative web talk show, the latest in a series of public comments from the Republican portraying Islam as a threat to America.
“We’re giving people permission to hate again, and I know that sounds a little harsh at first, but we’ve seen this movement to eradicate hate in our culture, that is the worst thing we could do,” Beckwith said during a May 21 appearance on FlashPoint, a Christian conservative program that frequently blends politics, religion and prophecy-themed commentary. Beckwith appeared on the program wearing a polo bearing the Indiana lieutenant governor insignia.
Beckwith argued that “God hates certain things” and later turned specifically to Islam.
“If radical jihadi mindset starts coming into our state, I’m going to hate it, and I’m going to hate it with everything that I am,” he said. “I’m going to call on others to hate it, because I hate Islam. It’s a demonic death cult.”
He added: “I love Muslims, because they make great Christians when Jesus gets a hold of them, but I hate Islam.”
After Muslim civil rights advocates and Indiana Muslim leaders condemned the remarks as reckless and inflammatory, Beckwith appeared to double down Thursday in a pair of social media posts.
“On the close of Eid, after much prayer and consideration after my recent interview, I would like to take this opportunity to wish all Muslims in Indiana the best,” Beckwith wrote, referring to the Muslim holiday Eid al-adha, one of Islam’s holiest days. “And by best I mean I hope you all become Christian.”
U.S. Rep. André Carson, one of two Democrats representing Indiana in Congress and one of only a handful of Muslim members of Congress, condemned Beckwith’s remarks, calling them “outrageous, dangerous, and completely unacceptable from a public official.”
“This rhetoric is hateful and targets an entire faith community, including countless Muslim Hoosiers who contribute to our state every single day as teachers, doctors, first responders, and small business owners,” Carson said in a statement to The Indiana Citizen. “Hoosier Muslims and the billions of Muslims around the world deserve the same dignity and respect as anyone else. Leaders of both parties should unequivocally condemn these comments and reject hate in all its forms.”
The Indiana Citizen reached out to Gov. Mike Braun’s office for comment, but did not hear back.
Maliha Zafar, the executive director for the Indiana Muslim Advocacy Network & IMAN Advocates Inc., said it was “deeply concerning” to see an elected official partake in and encourage such “abhorrent behavior.”
“He said it himself, he’s inciting hate,” Zafar said. “We don’t want to see this in Indiana—or anywhere.”
Zafar said the timing adds another layer of concern, considering earlier this month a San Diego mosque was targeted during a shooting that killed three men and two suspects.
“Just one week after a hate-driven shooting targeting a Muslim community in San Diego, rhetoric like this from elected leaders is especially reckless and harmful. To see these comments made during Eid al-Adha, one of the holiest times in Islam centered on prayer, family, charity, and community, is deeply hurtful and abhorrent.”
The remarks are the latest in a broader pattern of comments from Beckwith about Islam and Christianity that have drawn criticism from Muslim civil rights advocates, who argue the rhetoric risks fueling hostility toward Muslims in Indiana and nationwide.
In response, the Council on American-Islamic Relations, the nation’s largest Muslim civil rights and advocacy organization, invited Beckwith to visit an Indiana mosque and meet with Muslim residents. The organization also criticized what it described as rhetoric that denigrates Islam and inflames hostility toward Muslims.
“Although Mr. Beckwith has every right to express his own religious views, including a hatred of another world religion, he should have the wisdom to understand that using his platform as lieutenant governor to spread panic about an imaginary Muslim takeover of Indiana is unbecoming of his office and dangerous to the Indiana Muslim community,” the organization said in a statement.
CAIR also argued that “it is impossible to encourage the people of Indiana to hate an entire religion without fomenting hatred” toward Muslims living in the state.
The organization linked its concerns to what it described as a broader rise in anti-Muslim harassment and violence nationwide, including the recent deadly attack at a mosque in San Diego. CAIR said it recorded more than 8,600 anti-Muslim bias complaints in 2025, the highest annual total in the organization’s history.
While Muslims account for less than 1% of Indiana’s population—an estimated 41,000 residents and 30 mosques statewide—Beckwith has repeatedly focused on Islam in interviews and online posts, warning about “radical Islam,” suggesting an outright ban on Sharia law and arguing Muslim mayor of New York, Zohran Mamdani, has no right to “force his values on New York” because “we are a Christian nation.”
Sharia refers broadly to Islamic religious and ethical principles derived from the Quran and hadith, the recorded sayings and traditions of the Prophet Muhammad. The term is often translated as “the correct path” or “the path to water,” according to the Council on Foreign Relations and Muslim advocacy organizations.
During a December 2025 appearance on FlashPoint, Beckwith claimed there was a “seven step plan” for “radical Islam to take over America” and suggested the Book of Revelation foretold Islamic extremism and the beheading of Christians who refuse to “bow” to it.
Nationally, the Muslim population is estimated at roughly 4.5 million people, or about 1.3% of the U.S. population.
Beckwith, who serves as a pastor at Life Church in Noblesville, frequently blends religion and politics in public appearances and has previously embraced the label “Christian nationalist.” Since taking office, he has also promoted initiatives aimed at expanding the role of faith-based institutions in civic life with his faith-based institutions initiative, pastoral roundtables, and a joint effort with the Attorney General’s office to produce a “Churches’ Bill of Rights” resource.
These newest remarks come amid broader debates in Indiana and nationally over religious liberty and the role faith should play in public life, including recent attention surrounding the Trump administration’s “anti-Christian bias” initiative and state-level efforts to expand the influence of religious institutions in public policy.
Sydney Byerly is a political reporter who grew up in New Albany, Indiana. Before joining The Citizen, Sydney reported news for TheStatehouseFile.com and most recently managed and edited The Corydon Democrat & Clarion News in southern Indiana. She earned her bachelor’s in journalism at Franklin College’s Pulliam School of Journalism (‘Sco Griz!).
The Indiana Citizen is a nonpartisan, nonprofit platform dedicated to increasing the number of informed and engaged Hoosier citizens. We are operated by the Indiana Citizen Education Foundation, Inc., a 501(c)(3) public charity. For questions about the story, contact Marilyn Odendahl at marilyn.odendahl@indianacitizen.org.
