Indian Americans are more visible than ever this election - and a bigger target for racism

With Election Day coming soon and pundits saying every vote counts, Indian Americans know they matter - but does the racist speech coming from the right matter to them?

People stand in prayer and song during a celebration of India's 75th Independence Day in Nay Aug Park in Scranton, Pennsylvania, in August 2022. The Times-Tribune / AP

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This election year, Indian-American politicians have been more visible than ever – from Kamala Harris to Nikki Haley, members of the influential community have become household names. But that has only made the community a bigger target for racism.

Indian-American voters have seen a steady surge in negative attacks against them in 2024 compared with other election years. With election day less than two weeks away and the pundits constantly saying every vote counts, they know they matter – but does the racist speech coming from the right matter to them?

Democratic candidate Ms Harris identifies as black but also celebrates her Indian heritage. Right-wing conspiracy theorist Laura Loomer tweeted a few weeks ago that the White House would smell of curry and become a call centre should Ms Harris be elected president.

Two days after she made the comments, she travelled with Republican candidate Donald Trump to Philadelphia for the presidential debate and was seen by his side during a memorial ceremony for the victims of the September 11, 2001, terror attacks.

Kamala Harris pays tribute to her Indian mother

01:15

Condemnation for Ms Loomer’s tweet came from self-proclaimed non-partisan groups such as the Hindu American Foundation.

“We strongly condemn the appalling and racist remarks made by Laura Loomer regarding Vice President Kamala Harris. Comments that mock or denigrate someone’s ethnic heritage have no place in our political discourse,” said the organisation's executive director, Suhag Shukla.

But there has been support for Mr Trump from other Indian-American organisations, such as Hindus for America First.

The comments were examples of the kind of lazy racism at which even people of Indian origin shake their heads. On their “Gucci Turban” podcast, Nimesh Patel and Asif Mansoor called them “cartoonishly racist” and the “lowest common racism”.

The language spewed by some Republicans has not solely been directed at the Democratic presidential hopeful.

Mr Trump's running mate, JD Vance, is married to an Indian American. She has been the target of a number of attacks over her heritage, with white nationalist Nick Fuentes – who Mr Trump has hosted at Mar-a-Lago – saying that Mr Vance was not qualified to uphold white identity given his marriage and mixed-race children.

Republican vice presidential nominee JD Vance walks with his wife Usha Vance during a campaign event in Lindale, Georgia. Reuters

Vivek Ramaswamy and Nikki Haley, during their failed bids for the Republican candidacy, were often subjected to racism from fellow members of their party. Mr Trump, for example, questioned Ms Haley's eligibility to be president, given her lineage. Mr Ramaswamy, after stepping aside and endorsing Mr Trump, was the subject of a headline on satirical conservative website Babylon Bee: “Trump Promises Vivek an Administration Position Running the White House 7-Eleven.”

What the Desi community thinks

Indian Americans have traditionally voted Democrat. The numbers – upwards of 60 per cent – closely align with the way the Jewish population votes. But there has been a noticeably sharp rise in Republican support during the Trump era.

Rajiv Ranjan, a Dallas-based airline executive with roots in Netarhat, Bihar, used to vote Democrat but has made a U-turn due to his changing views on immigration.

“Each time there is any initiative to make it easier for productive, law-abiding people to be naturalised, the Democrats’ romance with illegal migrants makes it impossible,” he tells The National. “Why should they be allowed to jump the queue? This is the way many Indian Americans I know feel.”

When it comes to the anti-Indian discrimination from some Republicans, he is dismissive. “It isn’t as if we were not exposed to discrimination in India,” Mr Ranjan says.

CP Ganesh, a senior executive, sees Republicans as offering the best solution for rising healthcare costs. “Health care must be made more affordable, for everyone, regardless of race or gender,” he says.

The racism that has appeared during the campaign is not ideal, but there are more important issues, Mr Ganesh says.

The “free speech” platform GAB had Indian-American Utsav Sanduja as part of its core team. Mr Sanduja leads Hindus for America First, which says Mr Trump is “very pro-India”.

The GAB “dissenter shop” features T-shirts with slogans including “Make cats pets again” – referring to Republican claims that Haitian immigrants in Ohio were stealing and eating people's pets – and “Deport them all”, amid a whole buffet of white nationalist merchandise.

Donald Trump appears alongside Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the 'Howdy Modi' community summit in Houston, Texas, in 2019. EPA-EFE

Some in the community appreciate the chemistry Mr Trump has with Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The Indian leader voiced his support for Mr Trump at the “Howdy Modi” event in Houston in 2019, and even used a modified version of his own campaign slogan to boost the American politician: “Ab ki baar, Trump sarkar,” or “Make it a Trump government this time.”

The community is far from a monolith, however. Sunil Roy, who spoke to The National alongside his wife Ananya, said that any discussion of politics would lead to a domestic dispute. He said of the racist rhetoric coming from Republicans: “It’s election time, everyone does it.” His wife, however, said she found the remarks genuinely offensive.

Lux Narayan, a New Jersey-based entrepreneur, says he “curates” his friends. “What I would really like to see in politics is decency,” he says.

Others refuse to let the matter slide. “There’s a group of Trump/Maga [Make America Great Again] supporters who seem unaffected by controversial views on immigration and race and religion. Maybe they think they are white,” says Sharmila Bose, part of Texas activist group the Desi Dems of Colin County.

To better elucidate Ms Bose's comment – and why support for Ms Harris in the community varies – it is necessary to go back almost 100 years, to when Bhagat Singh Thind argued before the Supreme Court that he was Caucasian by virtue of being Aryan, given his high caste, and was therefore deserving of US citizenship through naturalisation.

The prevailing “science” of the time said that the Aryan – a pseudoscientific historical racial concept that refers to people descended from the Proto-Indo-Europeans – was the superior race. Desperate to avoid the injustices suffered by the black community, Mr Thind hoped that this claim would allow him the rights and privileges afforded to whites.

He used the racism of the times to support his cause, but the Supreme Court ruled against him because he was not, in fact, white. The decision paved the way for the Immigration Act of 1924, which severely restricted the influx of migrants.

Much changed under Lyndon Johnson when the quotas were abandoned in 1965, opening the door for a number of migrants from Asian countries.

Vestiges of the arguments made by Mr Thind remain, and over the years they have produced politicians like Ms Haley and Mr Ramaswamy, who ignore or brush off the casual racism flung their way - perhaps in hopes that they might eventually be thought of as part of the club.

A few votes, a huge difference

The Indian diaspora in the US has been extremely successful. The median household income is about $150,000 and nearly 80 per cent of Indian Americans over the age of 25 have a bachelor’s degree.

Sundar Pichai, chief executive of Google and Alphabet. Reuters

Indian Americans are at the top of several fields and major companies: Ajay Banga is president of the World Bank, Sundar Pichai heads Google and Satya Nadella oversees Microsoft, to name a few. But the community's impact on politics has been relatively limited.

In Texas, where a tenth of the Indian diaspora lives, the Desi Dems of Colin County want the community's vote to have a local impact. The group holds events such as Politics and Pakoras to encourage community discourse.

“It’s vital that people go down the ballot, vote for local officials and judges, on issues like defunding public schools, women’s health, sensible gun laws. That’s where just a few votes can make a huge difference,” one activist said.

The rising influence of the community can already be seen, with Ms Harris as the Democratic candidate and Mr Ramaswamy and Ms Haley's appearance on the ticket during the Republican primaries.

During an event with Mr Modi last year, he hailed the “historic” number of Indian Americans serving in Congress, making mention of the “Samosa Caucus” – Pramila Jayapal, Ro Khanna, Raja Krishnamoorthi and Shri Thanedar.