Miss America 2014 crowned and Social media erupts with racism!

[delhi2lahorekarachi]

Re: Miss America 2014 crowned and Social media erupts with racism!

@goodname

Discursive incivility in social media and the Internet is quite common all over the world. But controversy sells. So perhaps some media person spotted a few nasty comments on Twitter and decided to make a juicy story out of it, blowing things out of proportion.

Let’s not get carried away. Those few Twitter comments are hardly representative of people. Communities like Indian Americans, for example, are among the most prosperous in the US, which just goes to show that the US and Americans remain among the most welcoming, tolerant, and embracing people. Go, for example, to Silicon Valley or visit American colleges, including Ivy League universities and you will find lots and lots of Asians and Indians and Indian-Americans. Of course, their work ethics and hard work-- I think Indian American kids, for example, have won something like 12 Spelling Bees in the last 13 years or so-- pays off too but the opportunities a country gives its people to excel and achieve their potential should not be discounted either.

That’s a patriotic american reply which i am sure is true. However, it is still concerning the comments coming out. They may be uneducated and America is the land of opportunity no doubt but it still should be highlighted. There is still some racism in america towards south asians whether they be Indian or Pakistani. Indians may generally be darker than Pakistanis but how many non-South asian americans can pick that out?

No doubt Indian Americans, like other Asian Americans, have made a positive impression. There have been accomplished Pakistani Americans like Nadia Ali (grammy nominated singer), Faran Tahir (actor), Huma Abedin (politics),Saqib Ali (politics), Michael Chowdry (forbes 400 businessman), Asma Gull Hassan (award winning writer) and Dr Ommaya (famous neurosurgeon) so its not something Indians have a monopoly on.

Still Indian Americans, like other Asians, have issues highlighted about them in the media whether that be domestic violence, mistreatment of bride by family and preference for boys etc There are still negative stereotypes around Indians of being call centre workers, running 711s, having certain behaviour towards women no matter how untrue they may be. (didn’t some US politician make a 711 joke). What about that elderly Indian Hindu American guy who got pushed by a hispanic lady onto an incoming train because she wanted to punish “Muslims or Hindus responsible for 911?” Or discrimination against Sikhs. Maybe there aren’t that many examples of discrimination but they do exist and when it does people don’t always remember the shining examples in their community of that background, they remember negative examples.

I agree with you though that the West offers minorities overall better opportunities then middle east and asian countries. Unlike middle eastern countries, an Indian or Pakistani, can be seen as a first class citizen in the US.