Op Ed: Wake Up My Fellow Indian Americans
by Mike Ghouse
This is a wake-up call to all Asians, including Indian Americans. Over 500 cases of harassment of Asians have been reported in the last few weeks. There is a growing anti-Asian sentiment and we need to watch ourselves.
Over a decade ago, when Microsoft and other significant employers laid off American born individuals and hired low paid immigrant Indians, it caused a lot of resentment against Indians.
Another example is anti-semitism. About 96% of nations in the world resent Israel for violating the resolutions passed by the United Nations. It is not anti-semitism but resentment for rejecting the resolutions passed by the world community of nations.
All of us from Atheists to Zoroastrians, including Christians, Jews, Muslims, Hindus, Dalits, and others, should not feel insecure wherever we are a minority. The hallmark of a civilized society is for a majority of the people to treat everyone as equal with equal rights and equal opportunities to seek life, liberty, and happiness.
The innocent or ignorant segment of the majority in any nation lacks empathy towards the minorities in their countries. Because it does not happen to them, they refuse to believe that harassing minorities is a myth.
The ignorant segment of Pakistani Muslims cannot see the harassment doled out to Hindus, Christians, and Sikhs. Likewise, the unaware section of Indian Hindus does not know the lynching and harassment of Dalits, Muslims, Sikhs, and Christians. The same is the case with the ignorant segment of whites in America about black Americans.
The cruel segment of all majorities believes that minorities deserve the beating.
There is growing resentment against India and that may translate into resentment against all Indian Americans. Because the cruel segment of Indian Americans is not speaking up against the lynching and harassment of Christians, Muslims, and Dalits in India, the White Christian groups are piling up evidence against India instead of individual leaders who are causing such pain to Christians. If the economy were to tank, all of us, the Indian Americans will have to pay the price.
I suggest, we all speak up against injustice and save our tales as good and just Indians. It sounds terrible, but it is better to do the right thing than remain quiet. As Martin Luther King Jr had rightly said, being neutral amounts to siding with the wrong side.
It is time to wake up and do the right thing rather than regret it. If I were to live for such an event, I could say in Rush Limbaugh’s words, I told you so.
If we stand up for the rights of everyone, we cannot go wrong. Speak up against what is wrong – if you don’t know, ask the ones who do.
2020
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