Post-election reactions
South Asian Americans have voiced their opinions both on ballots and across the internet.
Issue #7
Hi all —
The election is (mostly) over.
A fun fact highlighted by lawyer Neal Katyal on Twitter: The second-most powerful officials in soon both the United States (Vice President-elect Kamala Harris after Jan 20, 2021) and United Kingdom (Rishi Sunak, Chancellor of the Exchequer) have Indian roots.
While these milestones are notable, Harris’ mother — Shyamala Gopalan — might have framed it best: “You may be the first, but make sure you’re not the last.”
But while Harris’ historic win is a time to recognize a milestone, it’s also an important moment to remember a few things, as lawyer Deepa Iyer said:
For those that celebrate, a very happy Diwali to all.
Thanks for joining the conversation,
Vignesh Ramachandran (@VigneshR)
Co-founder of Red, White and Brown Media
Brown Politics
Vice President-elect Kamala Harris
Newsrooms all across the country have been doing comprehensive reporting covering the reaction, and here are some highlights:
“Harris makes history as first female, Black, South Asian American VP-elect” — NBC Asian America
“Indian Americans Celebrate Vice President-Elect Kamala Harris” — NPR
“How a Joe Biden Presidency Could Change U.S.-India Relations” — TIME
“Joy in India as Biden and Harris Win, but Questions, Too” — The New York Times
“Kamala Harris achieved what she wanted to do, says aunt” — Times of India/ANI
“British Peer Criticized for Calling Kamala Harris ‘the Indian’” — The New York Times
“Desi Twitter bursts with pride over Kamala Harris as VP-elect” — NBC Asian America
“With Harris as VP, South Asian women see an opening into politics” — NBC Asian America
“Asian American lawmakers celebrate Harris as VP-elect, call for more progress” — NBC Asian America
I also wrote an op-ed for the San Francisco Chronicle, one of Harris’ hometown newspapers, about what I believe her win means to parts of Indian American communities.
How South Asian Voters Shaped the Election
Journalist Kiran Misra in ZORA smartly summarizes South Asian American communities’ impacts across the country this year — from advertisements and outreach to Brown candidates who ran for office.
The Indian American Impact Fund (IMPACT) summarized dozens of Brown candidates who they endorsed and the results:
First-Time Voters
NBC News’ Mansee Khurana wrote about how she convinced her parents to vote in 2016. And then there’s this:
A Big Brown Book
Post-election also means there will be a hiring frenzy in public offices across the U.S. IMPACT is compiling resumes for interested candidates in its “Brown Book 2.0” initiative. In 2018, the organization gathered over 235 resumes that were reviewed and shared with hiring offices.
Los Angeles (Finally) Gets Some Local Asian Representation
This honestly was a little shocking when I read it, because Los Angeles County is almost 15% Asian. But LA finally has an Asian American woman on its city council, as well as its first Indian American:
Some notable reactions to Harris’ historic VP election:
And a reminder for the world on how to pronounce Kamala:
Brown People
Kamala Harris, Democratic senator from California, became the first woman and first Black/South Asian American to be elected as vice president of the United States (see above).
Dr. Vivek Murthy, who was Surgeon General of the United States from 2014 to 2017, has been named a co-chair on the Biden-Harris Transition’s COVID-19 Advisory Board, which will advise Biden and Harris. Biden-Harris Transition website
Kash Patel has been named the chief of staff to the Trump administration’s new Acting Defense Secretary Christopher Miller. Miller was appointed on Nov. 9 after President Trump announced on Twitter he had fired former Secretary Mark Esper. The Wall Street Journal
Ajay Banga, chief executive of Mastercard, spoke with The New York Times about running the financial juggernaut, growing up in India as an Army general’s son and his Sikh faith. Banga made a promise to his 19,000 employees at Mastercard: No one would get laid off because of the coronavirus’ impacts. The New York Times
Hrishikesh Hirway is the creator and host of “Song Exploder,” a podcast that dives into individual songs and how they were made. The podcast is also now a Netflix series. And this line in The New York Times’ new profile on Hirway makes me wish he anchored election night on a major TV network: “Hirway… with…a Zen disposition and one of those improbably smooth radio voices that could double as a treatment for hypertension.” The New York Times
Vidya Balan, who plays Shakuntala Devi (known as “the human computer”) in a new film, spoke with journalist Archith Seshadri about the movie and life in 2020. On the ongoing pandemic Balan shared deep reflection: “I think there are other lessons that I hope we all have learnt. Value for ourselves, value for our time, for our relationships. And to realize that we can keep running for the rest of our lives but, beyond a point, what are we running towards?” Khabar
Riz Ahmed’s movie, “Sound of Metal,” comes to Amazon Prime on Dec. 4. The New York Times spoke with Ahmed in an interesting interview that reveals his love for South Asian art. The New York Times
Rooshy Roy is founder of beauty brand Aavrani. Journalist Shivani Persad profiles Roy and how she has honored her Indian background in her beauty company. The bright orange on Aavrani packaging, for example, represents the mangoes her grandmother used to cut for her. InStyle
Pia Dandiya, a founding high school principal in New York, was named as one of 14 White House Fellows for the 2020-2021 year. The program allows fellows get experience in federal government. Mint
Viky Bohra has pled guilty to charges of insider trading. Between 2015 and 2018, the Washington state man used insider information to make Amazon stock trades, resulting in more than $1.4 million in profit. The Associated Press/Seattle Times
Watercooler Conversations
It was devastating to hear about legendary “Jeopardy” host Alex Trebek’s death on Nov. 8. Trebek had battled pancreatic cancer and passed away at age 80. He had a special role for immigrant families in the U.S., several who say his show helped them learn English.
Also check out:
Indians really love Cadbury chocolate, as food writer Priya Krishna explored for The New York Times.
Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-Washington) just wanted to make some paneer tikka as comfort food the day before the election. Of course, Indian twitter freaked out — and not in a good way, reeking of self-righteousness.
WhatsApp Forward of the Week
I’m obsessed with dogs. When we’ve had enough of politics, let’s just listen to our nation’s dogs who love us all regardless of political views, regardless if it’s Election Day or just another weekday. Turns out, the soon-to-be First Dogs — Major and Champ — are like their human dad and also appreciate ice cream:
Your Thoughts
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Red, White and Brown first launched on Medium back in 2016 before the previous presidential election and was re-focused in 2018 with renewed vigor to spark conversations about culture and politics in the United States through the lens of South Asian American race and identity. Now in 2020, please tell your friends and family to subscribe to this newsletter and follow the latest posts on Medium.
Follow @VigneshR on Twitter.