I'm an indian living and working in New York City, that great melting pot of races...and i wish to clarify what i perceive is a mistaken premise that people of anyther nation/color/race are more racist than Indians - Any indian traveling internationally will tell you that its the indians who are the most racist of all - 1. from the snooty gujju attendants at Heathrow airport who flirt and fawn over any 'gora' while studiously ignoring any indian, and being openly hostile towards any hapless african-american/chinese-american2. to the indian/bangladeshi NYC cabbie who doesnt stop for any non-white passenger3. to the 'upscale' desi nightclubs and restaurants in NYC that allow a native new yorker in sneakers and torn jeans but requires indians to brave the withering look and wear trousers and shoes
we are, quite simply, wired to believe that we are inferior, and our mission in life, is to somehow wash off our skin, and become whiter and be accepted by the whites.
Sadly, we do not understand that its not their skin color that makes the caucasian race (supposedly)superior, but their sense of individuality, discipline, communication skills, initiative and respect for other's rights. Thats why the same indians who spend the whole day trying to court whites go back to their own gujju/tambi/gulti/punju/mallu community apartment blocks, their habits of not cleaning up after them (witness Journal Square in NJ, Devon Street in Chicago, Little India in Singapore, or the indian parts of London), their habits of breaking the line, crowding the subway, and mismanaging body odor.
I'm an indian who has been in the US for only 18 months, and I have learnt that everyone in the world respects talent, diligence, discipline, and cleanliness. I've worked (or know people who work) in the biggest banks to the smallest donut shops in the East Coast and the Midwest in the US, and any south asian will vouch for the fact that the americans respect hard work and forthrightness (and cleanliness).
Its a combination of lack of self-esteem on part of indians and a tendency to band into their own groups instead of integrating into the mainstream that causes perceived racism, not any evil whites.
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4 comments:
hey, amazing stuff.direct from the heart! gud going!
subbu..this one ws pretty hard...n unfortunately true.....good one !!..will keep chkin 4 more ..:-)
18 months in US and you've become a Desi baiter (don't confuse with hater) Read about NYC Cabbies being racist (the Danny Glover compliant) and a few other incidents. First Para was impressive. It is the second one that appears reproachful (and a wee bit preachy) towards desis. Don't forget the place where you come from, we have had centuries of caste system (some of it still ingrained). Don't forget where you are right now, the same Caucasian's (with "respect for other's rights") wiping out millions of hapless native Indians. Racism is everywhere! There is nothing as being ‘more’ racist or being ‘less’ racist.
PS: There are enough white papers out there that prove that though Caucasian behavior becomes more politically correct, their internal prejudice still remains. Let me know if you need directions.
Happy blogging!
Good one man. I also agree with what some one said earlier - that everybody is racist. Only the degree of racism varies but most importantly, the way it manifests keeps changing as well. I will tell u this - u have to go on an elaborate tour within India to see how the locals discriminate against their fellow citizens. Check out Goa and Gokarna sometime to be a witness to all this.
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