Crowning of Miss “country” is a day of celebration. Of flowers, of happy tears , of long “thank you” speeches ( Though it is beyond me why recognition of a “standardised” beauty is cause for celebration ) . However, the crowing of Miss America that happened a few days back , was all this and much more. You see, the woman who was crowned “Miss America” is a woman ” with “Not your normal American name” like Susan, Emma or Mary but “Nina Davuluri. An American of Indian origin. Her crowning was surrounded with controversy of not being a “true” American. Isn’t the US supposed to be this huge melting pot of races and nationalities where you may come from any part of the world but it is your “American-ness” that matters the most.
Wasn’t it only a few weeks back that every platform in print and social media was urging us to remember that it was the 50th anniversary of the famous speech delivered by Martin Luther King? It is, for me, extremely, shocking, to read about the real America a few weeks down the line from this anniversary. Wasn’t the entire Civil Rights Movement all about non- discrimination on the basis of one’s skin colour? To dub a person an “Arab” or belonging to Al- Queda or the award as a 7-11 award is insulting the entire struggle and the philosophy that the Civil Rights Movement stands for
This incident is only the tip of the iceberg and should not be viewed in isolation but as a part of the entire movement which is an anti- thesis of the values that support and propounds equality and egalitarianism. Though the example is from a North American context, the phenomenon is not limited only to that part of the world. India, a country known for its diversity in terms of culture, religion, cuisine, skin colour and the dominant religion, Hinduism, being all embracing , one would firmly believe that equality is what we believe in, if not practice. More often than not this is nothing but naiveté.
I was first exposed to “racism” as a 12 year old when the entire nation witnessed protests over the implementation of reservation policy for the “depressed” classes. Most of the Brahamanical society was opposed to the reservation citing reasons of mediocrity over merit. How can merit triumph over mediocrity for specific sections of society when they are not provided the means to achieve that merit. Or the means that are there are so sub- standard that expectation of any merit is living in a fool’s paradise. Reservation or the “Quota” System” as we Indians call it, sometimes becomes the bane for the person who has used it, especially in the government aided intuitions and the civil services. His/ her intelligence, hard word and decision making abilities become subservient to the “ Quota System” that has facilitated the process of his/ her entry.
It’s not just at the political level that racism permeates every bit of the social fabric including our daily social intercourse. Marriage in India, is a very closed institution, dictated by numerous rules that are centuries old but are still followed in the name of traditions. As a rule, we marry within the confines of our own castes and sub- castes, mainly because we view the other castes and religions as either superior or inferior to us.
Have you noticed, how the word “ Bihari” ( meaning someone belonging to the state of Bihar) is used as a racial slur, an insult! If I can refresh the memory, most of our civil servants come from Bihar and the state in ancient time was the epitome of culture and civilisation. Biharis are some of the most hard- working people one can ever come across. The poverty, the deteriorating condition of civic amenities and education does not give the right to anyone to beat up and accuse them of taking away local jobs ( As was done by the great Uddhav Thakery, the self- proclaimed “Son of Maharashtra”).
Why just Biharis, even people from the North-eastern part of India are discriminated against. I do not blame any of my friends from this part of the country for not feeling “Indian”,. precisely because the rest of India does not consider them a part of the country. They are often referred to as Chinese/ Nepali/ Philippino. Anyone having fair skin, small eyes and a flat nose is NOT a Nepali or a Chinese. India has them too. The time we understand this will be when we truly regard these seven states as part of our nation. They are NOT “Chinkies”. Just like using the N word for an African or a black American is racist, so is the word “Chinky”.
It surprises me sometimes how the “Unity and Diversity” phrase is used so conveniently in the Indian context. Where this celebration of diversity goes when an innocent Christian missionary like Graham Staines is killed along with his two sons in 1999 for spreading the word of God by the fundamentalist Hindu outfit in the interiors of the state of Orissa. What wrong was he doing by talking about his religion and giving an option to people to join? Where does diversity disappear to when thousands of Muslims are killed justified in the name of religion? When India is all about tolerance and embracing differences, why is a Muslim called a Pakistani, when he/ she is as much an Indian as anyone else.
When will we realize that humans are just humans, despite the many differences of skin colour, religion, caste and nationality. Each one of us would lose out on an experience worth cherishing for if we do not rise above these petty differences.
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