'I would rather be handcuffed and paraded in the United States than in India'
THE UNWELCOME INDIAN
Message Board views are edited lightly
Name: yash makharia
Email: yashmakharia@hotmail.com
Message: I think it is total bullshit. They are plain jealous of us hardworking, loyal, brainy "INDIANS". JAI HIND
Name: Kanchana Rao
Email: kanchana_ap@yahoo.com
Message: "Awake, Arise..." said Swami Vivekananda, but are we even trying to? Racism in its dirtiest form is what we see today. Are we Indians so unworthy as to be treated like untouchables? And for what are we bearing all this? For a few dollars more? We have no one to blame but ourselves for looking at the illusionary greener patches on the other side of the fence. Where will all this take us? With the sleeping government, which dreams of foreign investment and develops tourism for the sake of foreigners who say you can do anything in India... for money of course, and of course the NRIs who make you feel that if you are not living in a foreign country (even if it be Nepal) you are worthless. "Take them where you want, give them what is left, they will take it, for Sir, they are a flock of sheep, who just wait for their Shepherd to lead the way..."
Name: Salil Rajhans
Email: salil_r@usa.net
Message: Whatever the Western nations might have to say on the issue of racism, Indians, whether immigrants or tourists, have to face the wrath of it..
One can always blame the government for that. Isn't that an easy way to shun your responsibility?
I guess the problem lies with the Indian psyche... Well, forget the illtreatment meted out in Western countries. If you walk into some shop in Rajasthan or Delhi along with some foreign tourists, you will be totally ignored... When our own folk behave in such a racist manner why blame the government, foreigners, or anybody else?!!
Probably this is the effect of the long British rule. White is superior seems to have taken root in our minds.
Name: J R Mundra
Email: jani01@mailcity.com
Message: Indian Goverment should also impose this rule on Britishers visiting India.
Name: santosh bhatt
Email: santoshbhatt@hotmail.com
Message: Yes, Indians are partially to be blamed, but even though our community and people stay away from crime and other problems, we still don't speak up. We need to get involved in the local politics of our adopted country because even though we are successful, we are still considered by white people as second-class citizens. As Indians we should not tolerate any kind of racial discrimination and fight back with full power to make this country and our motherland much stronger.
Jews are the best example and Indians lack in this field. We need to awake from the "GHULAMI" attitude and instead of getting impressed by whites, need to show that we are better than any other race because of our culture of 20,000 years. Hindus are not going to tolerate any nonsense.
santosh bhatt
Name: vinayak
Email: vinayak_1979
Message: Kill the American bastards. The Indians working with NASA should cause a nuclear explosion.
Name: Hema Sinha
Email: idlii@hotmail.com
Message: Hi,
I don't think the entire blame can be placed on the Indian. I believe the Westerners have had it so good for such a long time that now they find it hard to see someone not white succeeding at their game and beating them at it. They are raised from birth to believe they are superior somehow and when they grow up and realise they are not really superior and the only superiority is their looks, they get resentful and try every which way to get back their place of superiority which they feel they lost. If I place any blame with Indians at all, it is that they are generally self-absorbed and pay less or no attention to the feelings of the others. It is partly because they are so intent on succeeding or getting where they want to go that inadvertently they rub others the wrong way. I also believe the Indian government does not have the teeth to do much about these issues, so I would not place any blame with it at all.
Name: Manoj Patanaik
Email: manoja2k@yahoo.com
Message: The racism is a logical, though not correct, outcome of the invasion by Indian minds.
I would blame we Indians for this.
Name: Krishna Kumar
Email: kumar.krishna@mailcity.com
Message: When needs are more and availability is less, discrimination is practised blatantly or diplomatically. All examples worldwide will fit in this hypothesis. Remember that even though you speak the local language and practise the local culture, you are still an unwelcome person. This is something the Desi or ABCD (American Born Confused Desi) will never accept.
Now that the world has realised the potential of the Indian intellect, they target Indians. Sooner or later the Chinese will also face the same situation in USA.
Name: Tulips
Email: tulips@rediffmail.com
Message: My message to all Indians (aspiring to go abroad): don't ever leave ur country. Your mother country is the only country that is proud of u!!!! Don't put up with this shabby treatment.
Name: Sandeep
Email: purya@hotmail.com
Message: There is no point blaming others. We ourselves are responsible for this situation. Over the years, Indians abroad have acquired a dubious reputation for all things subversive. What is most unfortunate is that the guys from a knowledge-based industry like IT are also contributing to this. Ever since "bodyshopping" became the de facto mode of making money for Indians (particularly in the US), an unfortunate incident like this was bound to happen. When it comes to recognising and encouraging talent, people in the West are a lot more open than our folks back home. Racism might exist in a few places, but that in itself cannot be an excuse for the state in which we find ourselves today.
Name: Dinesh
Email: v_dinesh@hotmail.com
Message: Yes, I feel the Indian government & immigrants too are to be blamed for this. Even though we hold a major share in exporting traditional goods like leather etc. This new rule will have to be ignored, considering the relationship between the two countries.
Name: S C Batra
Email: scbatra@email.com
Message: It's not the government but the immigrant who is to blame. Indians, by nature, tend to function as individuals. They excel as individuals and at best primarily interact with their compatriots. They find it extremely difficult to integrate with the society at large, the whites, the blacks, the Hispanics, etc. This exclusiveness is not acceptable in a society which is more open and integrated.
Name: Mukund Kute
Email: mkute@visteon.com
Message: If NRIs are so angry at the INS for the humiliation meted out to decent people, why don't they write to their representatives in Congress and the Senate? Those with green cards, US citizenship and with clear legal papers should fear nothing and should show some courage to tell congressmen what they think of this treatment. There is no point expressing your ire on rediff's platform as nobody of any consequence in the US government reads rediff.com regularly. You can always request your representative to keep your name confidential. If so, please express your displeasure in a polite and respectful manner to your congressman and senator by visiting the following links, which will help you identify your rep:
http://www.house.gov/writerep/
http://www.senate.gov/
Name: kavitha
Email: kavi@yahoo.com
Message: Indians wherever they are, it is the same treatment they get. I mean even in India. The politicians are responsible for this. In fact, it is the Congress mainly. Always they have wanted to appease Muslims at the cost of Hindus. Take the example of Deepa Mehta, the contoversial filmmaker. She always shows the wrong side of Hindu culture. And there is Shabana Azmi to do the acting for her. Let Shabana Azmi act in a film where Muslim women's problems are shown and let Deepa produce the film which has to be shot in Muslim countries. It has become a fancy for all to criticise the Hindu religion. Let GoI stop wooing the Western countries for help or involvement. Like Narasimha Rao ex-PM. Never in his tenure did he turn to the US for any kind of help. The final word: GoI should be strong and resolve issues with Pakistan once and for all.
Name: chan
Email: chan7272@aol.com
Message: The only trump card we have at present is the IT industry. It is profitable and the skills are needed worldwide. Those computer geeks at Bangalore should come up with some new breakthroughs so the world will notice us. Make new products and let new inventions take hold like the Japs did with their electronic goods and cars in 1960. Come up with some space technology like we can hear what Clinton says in the White House or we can take pictures of an ant from space. Use computer power to make our defence mightier than USA's. If you are saying our engineers and programmers are the world's best, let the rope loose and tell them that within a year we will put INDIA on the map.
Kennedy said they would land man on the moon and the whole country backed him and made it a success. We need something great to happen in India so the world will start respecting us. Everything in USA is made in China. Let's take all those cottage industries from them and make it Made in India. Shun all Indian movies. They are nothing but crap. Dancing around the trees and gardens... wake up. Show computer power and other industrial strength so people can see what is happening in other parts of the world. Most of the film directors, scriptwriters and musicians are uneducated and do not have a vision other than making love-triangle movies. Make good documentaries so as to lift the spirit of students and the people of India.
Enough is enough. Those corrupt babus in dhoties should be stoned to death for taking bribes. If one politician is handled that way, all other corrupt babus will wake up. Get some young blood in the government. India is the garbage country of the world. At least we have the ability to clean the nation like Singapore. Give incentives that the best-looking state will get government help to build 50 schools or a world-class airport or make the roads which will put autobans and interstates to shame. Last, get rid of Pakistan once and for all.
Name: Bappa
Email: Braybarman@hotmail.com
Message: This is just the latest in a long line of episodes where Indians are treated as fourth-class citizens. I've seen this type of discrimination in the US, heard of similar horror stories from England and the Middle East. Even at major international airports I've seen Indian passport holders being unnecessarily harassed. The sight is pretty pathetic from aged dadis to young kids. As if each and every Indian is a suspected illegal.
Unfortunately, the religious, racial, nationalistic mindsets are not going to go away. For Indians it is not only the economic disadvantage (usually when the foreigner sees the Indian in their own country they view us as "another job taken" and seldom as a contributor to their economy). Secondly (probably the most frustrating thing), our government does little to protect the rights of its people at home or abroad. So the global image of the Indian abroad is that you can pretty much do anything to these people and if the media (Western media) doesn't take their side no one else will. Have we all forgotten the Bhopal disaster? Where has that ended? So the bottom line... Indians continue to be subject to economic/racial discrimination, whether you're a maidservant in Dubai or a six-figure-earning IIT grad working for a Big 3 on H1B. The feeling inside is the same: they'll keep you as long as they need you... and that's it.
I don't think the Indian guy or gal trying to make a career is to blame. For every 60K job they take how many million dollars do they contribute when that company implements its ERP or IPOs its ecommerce site? I think that's a better return on human capital than any of the previous generations of immigrants has contributed to the US economy in the last 300 years.
My heart goes out to the Indian immigrants. They have to face such discrimination and humiliation. I don't think there's a temporary quick fix for this.
Name: najeeb
Email: mohamed_najeeb@hotmail.com
Message: I have been in the US for 5 years and I have worked for major US companies, including GE and 3Com, and never ever have I faced racial discrimination. I can bet this is the only country in the whole world where foreigners can work and live without any problems. There is no country on the face of the earth that enjoys freedom greater than this country.
Najeeb
Name: mani krishnan
Email: manikrishnan@hotmail.com
Message: What happenned in San Antonio is despicable. I think all the H1 consultants in the USA and also the green card holders and US citizens should walk out for a day all over the USA in protest. This will result in work coming to a halt, the stockmarket itself will reflect the impact of this. The CEOs of the companies who will know the impact of such an action will speak to Washington and ensure that such actions don't happen. This, I think, is one of the effective responses we can have for this action.
Name: jacob
Email: sijiloommen@hotmail.com
Message: America was accommodating enough to give us an opportunity to build a life of our dreams and have a taste of prosperity which unfortunately we could never in our lifetime have had in our country. When this country had a need for IT professionals, they were willing to open doors and change laws to bring in millions of immigrant workers without prejudice of caste, colour or creed. That itself calls for appreciation coming from a country which will never open its doors on the same token. We still have the East India Company phobia that keeps us thinking that foreigners have come to invade and enslave our land. So we kick out Coca-Cola and Enron and burn two innocent children because MNCs are out to take over our country and missionaries are out to convert our country. If our own confidence in our country is so fickle, it's better that we are taken over and converted so that we can get rid of our own fears and start concentrating on building people's lives. America is confident about itself and dares you to be a citizen and let's be honest... that's everybody's dream... even those 40 at San Antonio, even now.
I feel for those 40 people at San Antonio and their families and like they, I too feel like going back... but my wife asks, "and do what?!"
It's ourselves to blame. Like Seshan said, "Take your broom and clean your own square foot!" It's high time. If any of the 40 persons are reading this, I hope and pray that things become normal soon and you can continue building your dreams. I read your article on the Net, but let's give a better life to our children through our sacrifice. The rest of us, I think we should get together to help them, at least financially -- if needed, because we all are in this together.
Name: Devil's Advocate
Email: we-will-all@go.to.hell
Message: Folks, I am sorry but I do not buy the argument that shit is happening in the US (UK's racism is too old to be disagreed with... it's been going on for millennia). I feel more ostracised in India than the US. Go and try to get a top job if you are not tech-savvy or your dad is not a big shot. Try going to a disco in student clothes or in an older car. Try to get your children admitted to a decent school. We lost our right to cry wolf on racism a long time back when we as a nation decided to keep the class structure. I would rather be handcuffed and paraded in the United States than in India. At least I will still be treated as a human being rather than the son or daughter of so and so. And don't bother about us immigrants. We left the country since our motherland could not cradle us in dignity or respect. I would rather die as an unwelcome immigrant in an unkown land than a stranger in my own land.
Name: Rajesh Paul
Email: miscrp@yahoo.com
Message: Obviously, Indians are not given the respect they should get. I wouldn't blame this totally on racism, but various factors, including the common practice of us Indians of treating our brethren like dirt. Much as I hate what the INS did to our fellow professionals, my thoughts are also drawn to the 'body shops' which were basically responsible for the technical 'illegality' of their status. I guess I don't need to elaborate on how these leeches operate. But what did these companies do a) to avoid this problem in the first place and b) to help these poor guys who have been so shoddily treated by the INS. I'm sure half of these guys have already been taken off their payrolls. And let's not forget to what lengths a lot of my fellow Indians go to get to this 'paradise'. Giving false certficates, falsifying documents, even entering into fake marriages... Somehow, I cannot blame just the white supremism being projected here for all this.
Name: Sandip Bhattacharya
Email: sandeepb11@hotmail.com
Message: It is a disgusting, cowardly act by the officials of a nation which proudly proclaims democracy.
But there is a sad truth. Bodyshoppers from India, just for the sake of some quick dollars, send a lot of people to the US without proper investigation of the organisations the people would be working for. Secondly, in addition to the qualified people, they also send a lot of people who somehow gathered some kind of false degrees and experience certificates. And they get caught.
The Govt of India should take strong action against these bodyshopping companies. But then, which Indian govt works for the benefit of the people?
Name: Dr K Viswanathan
Email: vxk@hotmail.com
Message: If you are perceived as weak every Tom, Dick and Harry will keep knocking you, right, left and middle.
Name: B K
Email: maverick@dacafe.com
Message: One reason that I can think of is that we as Indians don't give much for the American way of life. This is quite surprising to every other community as well! Because they always want to get into that mode. By not doing this, the Americans also may sometimes feel left out on the cultural stuff that India has to offer. As it is, they say the Americans are a country of loners, as told to me by a Canadian; And here we go 3-4 boys, cracking jokes, making noise, they feel happy yet left out on the fun. But they are generally quite respectful and always very positive minded, always ready to gain experiences. We as Indians should try to mix more with them, in the process get out of our shell, and then they will also begin to understand our way of life.
Actually American society is very open. You can do anything you want. There are no social/political barriers, unlike in India or other countries. Everybody is doing whatever he can be content with.
Name: Bhima Patel
Email: bhima8@hotmail.com
Message: I see a lot of people here saying that because of some malpractices by Indian recruiting agencies bringing in many Indians to the US, Indians get a bad reputation! Well, to tell you the truth, the average American doesn't care about this as long as the fraudulent immigrants are not going to engage in crime. Furthermore, have any of you heard of the several boatloads of Chinese refugees that have come to Canada? Every ethnic group does immigration fraud. It is not really as bad as what regular Americans do in bad areas, such as Detroit, Miami etc... I see some Indians are trying to blame their own people for this in some way. The truth of the matter is that these Indians were all computer professionals that the US needed badly. Why else would the US AIR FORCE have them work on their computer systems?!? NASA also has a lot of Indians. The INS officials did this because India has a govt that is run by spineless cowards.
The Chinese govt. would not have tolerated this. As one poster said, "Right is Might".
Name: rajendra rao
Email: velacheri@hotmail.com
Message: I read most of the letters in your column about treatment etc. Let me tell you, I came here in 1965 and for the past 35 years I live here very comfortably obeying the LAW to the full extent. Whether you are an Indian or American, this is the land of Law. As long as you pay your taxes and lead a peaceful life you have everything in life. This is a land of individual achievement and don't expect anything from govt, either from India or USA. Your individual effort and obeying the Law will get you somewhere here, compared to many other places in the world. Your talent is most respected here than any other place in the world.
Take India. Madrasis are not welcome in Maharashtra, UPites are not liked in Bengal, so on and so forth. We in India have more prejudice than any other place in the world. I am very proud to be Indian because that country teaches Peace, Family Values and million other extremley useful values that are lacking in other parts of the universe. Whereas here in USA you do admire where your talent is appreciated and if you cannot succeed here, you cannot succeed in other parts of the world. In 35 years I paid my Taxes, Real Estate Taxes which support the School system here, sent two beautiful girls to HARVARD (the cost is $500,000). Nobody helped me and I don't want anybody's help either. Me and my wife are very proud to work very hard to send them to such good schools and we think that is part of life.
So the moral of the story is, if you obey the Law, use your potential and then I bet you will succeed in life much better here than any other place in the world. It is all relative and nothing is absolute. In the '70s, Doctors and Engineers came here in large numbers. Now the IT people are coming and establishing themselves in large numbers. Have you heard anybody saying Americans are going to India for better living!!! Think about that -- Of couurse this is my OPINION!! Not meant to change anybody's opinion and so please do not reply to me!!! Have a great day.
Name: Dwarakanath
Email: nath_10@hotmail.com
Message: I feel that Indians are not courageous and don't revolt against anything and say "apne ko kya karna hai". If we r united and work together, everybody will start begging our country to work on their projects. So many talented Indians are working as wage labourers abroad... The Government should take a drastic step and make sure that there is no brain drain and make people come to India, not we people go out n work. And I have seen that people here talk bad about Indians, saying that they can't even speak English, not treating them properly (40 Indians arrested in San Antonio, though it was not their fault). If we keep quiet, we'll be suppressed. PLZ publicise this issue n make them realise that US has done wrong.
Name:Nagesh nayak
Email:nareshn@vsnl.com
Message:Sir,
Indian-origin people have problems. But Indians are professionals. More than 5 lakhs in number and they matter. The people who miss the bus shout. Be they locals, they try their wits, want us to be out. Here we can ask our govt to open doors for FDI and then the senators will listen. Then we will matter, anywhere in the world.
Nagesh Nayak
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