Vignesh I like you but you're way off on the Luigi Mangione issue. If you think that it is "strange" and "sickening" and "ludicrous insanity" for Indian folks to be excited by Mangione, then it suggests you empathize more with the CEOs who essentially mass murder people for a living than the many who suffer and die under a cruel healthcare system.
Thanks for reading and taking the time to share your comment.
To clarify, I was not commenting on the state of the health insurance system and won't be weighing in with my personal views. Rather, the Times of India link I shared is part of a genre of articles and memes around the suspect's pedigree and the kurta photo which were getting shared around. To me, the superficial tone of these memes have demonstrated a cheapening of what elsewhere online has been a more substantive/serious discussion both around health insurance and an alleged murder. I do wonder whether the same desi folks would have fawned over him in Insta stories and the like if he didn't align with their socioeconomic strata and relatable whiteness — like say had a photo circulated showing a rural, blue-collar life from a state they've never been to and if he didn't look the way he looks; or if he was Arab; or if he was Black; and so on.
My intention in sharing the link was that the kurta photo has been a particular point of conversation in South Asian American communities as part of a bigger news event. To me, the fervor around the photo sparks a question around a recurring focus on status consciousness/white supremacy in parts of South Asian communities.
Vignesh I like you but you're way off on the Luigi Mangione issue. If you think that it is "strange" and "sickening" and "ludicrous insanity" for Indian folks to be excited by Mangione, then it suggests you empathize more with the CEOs who essentially mass murder people for a living than the many who suffer and die under a cruel healthcare system.
There is a better path. Look to Rachel Wolfe at the Wall Street Journal: https://www.linkedin.com/posts/rachelbwolfe_i-waded-into-fraught-waters-this-weekend-activity-7274467284859924480-PF9W?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_desktop
Like I said, I genuinely like you Vignesh. But are you defending the powerful, or speaking up for those on the other side of power?
Thanks for reading and taking the time to share your comment.
To clarify, I was not commenting on the state of the health insurance system and won't be weighing in with my personal views. Rather, the Times of India link I shared is part of a genre of articles and memes around the suspect's pedigree and the kurta photo which were getting shared around. To me, the superficial tone of these memes have demonstrated a cheapening of what elsewhere online has been a more substantive/serious discussion both around health insurance and an alleged murder. I do wonder whether the same desi folks would have fawned over him in Insta stories and the like if he didn't align with their socioeconomic strata and relatable whiteness — like say had a photo circulated showing a rural, blue-collar life from a state they've never been to and if he didn't look the way he looks; or if he was Arab; or if he was Black; and so on.
My intention in sharing the link was that the kurta photo has been a particular point of conversation in South Asian American communities as part of a bigger news event. To me, the fervor around the photo sparks a question around a recurring focus on status consciousness/white supremacy in parts of South Asian communities.