The Dilemma Of The South Asian Indian

If you meet a South Asian Indian anywhere in the US, other than the stereotype of a white collared upper middle class professional, chances are you will meet someone who answers to this description: Text book educated but less generally read, aware of current events more as talking points but not something that he or she would relate to in a profound socio-political context, and whose artistic sensibilities are most often limited to the cup holder designs in the new Acura or the sleek elegance of a Lexus. The South Asian Indian American community is a productive group complacent in its professional success, peaceful with its unremarkable lifestyle and networked well for its spiritual-religious needs. It exists within this comfort zone and is less inclined to make its voice heard publicly about contemporary issues let alone jumping onto the ongoing polemics about society, race and the state.

The killing of Srinivas Kuchibotla in Kansas has been a subdued awakening to the diaspora of Indian Americans. In parties, social gatherings and general conversations, there are whispers of concern and anxieties exchanged about the killing. The fact that he was a white collared professional just like any of us lends an extra relevance to the event. The usual fearless opinion mongering on events like the Syrian refugee crisis has been replaced by a more subdued but a more practical way of looking at the current state of affairs especially regarding the security of educated Indian Immigrants in an increasingly xenophobic America -- our adopted home which we love as much as anyone else.

Srinivas’ heinous murder not only brings out the devil in the bottle but even more fundamentally it tells us that there was a devil in the first place. One can expect such a thing in other lands but not here, not in this greatest of countries. Before the Kuchibotla murder, this belief was a cliché’. Post Kuchibotla, it is naïveté. The new America if it proceeds down this path threatens not just the immigrant population but the American promise itself. As a South Asian immigrant, I can foresee, going forward, the emergence of a more cautious, proactive and self-aware Asian-Indian demographic. It is a good thing for multiple reasons. One, it compels the community to come out of its cocoon, and respond to the contemporary events as they evolve. Two, it underscores the importance of a highly-educated community such as ours contributing socially and politically to restore the American dream not just for us but for the whole country. Hate crimes have no place anywhere let alone in a multi-racial democracy like the United States. The crime has been committed. Now it’s up to the whole country, to invest this murder of an innocent man with a purpose. The purpose should be that of resilience, optimism and a renewed sense of trust in the American way of life. A life that we aspired for and was provided to us by this remarkable country.