If you haven’t been following the news, there’s been  back-to-back (supposedly racist) attacks on at least six Asians (Indians)  in Australia. One person (a 25 year old student named Shravan Kumar) suffered serious (almost fatal) injuries and is still in critical condition. The media has had its field day, voicing venomous rhetoric on the spate of racist attacks. There’s been a flurry of protests, globally. 18 Indians were arrested after one such protest (for no reason, apparently) and later let out, in Australia. The incident has reached spectacular proportions with  Amitabh ‘Big B’ Bachchan rejecting a doctorate degree conferred on him by Queensland University of Technology, Australia, in protest.

CC credits: ThinkVegan

A few thoughts in this regard:

• In India, millions of people were/are slaughtered (not just beaten up, but hacked into pieces) just because they belonged to a particular religion/caste/sect or because they spoke a particular language. News items about foreign nationals getting attacked/molested abound by the day. Such a nation, which can’t even handle its internal woes has no right to protest about half a dozen of  its citizens getting flogged abroad!
• People who go outside the nation to pursue higher education – I do not blame them. Our education facilities are abysmal to say the least. But they should keep the fact in mind that there’s no reason cribbing after being hit by drunk/unruly/racist people. They should’ve thought about the consequences.
• Australia, is more pluralist a nation than India, and if you check the stats, the incidents of violence is far lower than the same in India! Calling Australia (and other foreign nations where NRIs live, for that matter) ‘racist’ without any sound reason, whatsoever, is sheer madness! Any country would give preference to its own citizens rather than foreigners – it’s natural. Cribbing over policies by foreign nations that support its citizens and condemning their ‘discriminatory’ laws is childish!
• The media has a staunch hand in beating the issue out of proportion. Far from showing solidarity with the hapless victims, it has commercialized the whole issue, spewing meaningless debates, in a relentless quest for eye-ball space and ad-revenue! I’m reminded of the quote by media-baron Rupert Murdoch (which incidentally, is featured in the bond movie – ‘Tomorrow Never Dies’): “There’s no news, like bad news.”
• Why bother to leave your motherland for a distant land in search of ‘better prospects’? Given all the resources of our nation, it’s not so hard to find success here. All one needs is some will-power to fight the anomalies of the system that bog you down and to cut the red tape!

All said, Racism is a reality – an ugly truth that refuses to go away despite all the anti-apartheid-struggles and tryst-to-destiny’s. Xenophobia and racism – meaningless mutual hatred, will exist as long as man remains to be a social animal. However stringent the laws become, however brainwashed people get, in the back of their mind, many citizens, if not all,  will always be xenophobic. The only way to tackle racism is to stay back in your own nation, swear by it and to work for it!

Still, is it so hard to realize that despite minor bodily, soci0-economic differences, a subsaharan tribal is a carbon copy of Hon. Prime Minister of Australia Kevin Rudd?

The last ink drop:

Check out this series of racism tests – an ingenious way to check if you’re racist or not!

Within three days,  seventy hundred and fifteen million Indians would exercise their electoral franchise in the world’s biggest democratic exercise. Indeed, a proud moment for all of us Indians. The power of democracy showcased in its sublimest way. Yet, there are many amongst us, people who call themselves ‘skeptics’. People who’ve decided not to vote for this elections, citing a feeble argument that it wouldn’t make a difference.

CC Credits: piccadillywilson

Trust me, if you’re a person like that, you’re making a VERY VERY grave mistake!

In fact it’s incumbent on us to do something for our Motherland. “Us” as in, you, me and the people around us. That’s why India is  called a democracy. The best thing we can do is to vote out the present government and give someone else a chance. Someone once said that  in a democracy, no government is brought to power – always, the ruling government gets thrown out. We are responsible for our leaders and our country – the best thing we can do is to “vote” and make sure we are heard. If you say that doesn’t make a difference – then please open your eyes! To quote the Jaago Re ad, you are SLEEPING!  It really does make a difference. By not voting you are allowing a corrupt government to continue in power/you are not allowing a progressive government to continue the process of reforms (depends on how you view the current political milieu). If you vote against a corrupt government, you are at least “trying” to push them down and vice versa. Does that ring a bell? People often say:  “None of the candidates I’m goanna vote for are good. Then why even bother?”. Unfortunately, that is truth – it’s necessary evil. The situation can be changed only by getting more and more people to involve in politics. Politics is not a bad thing. It’s one of the best jobs in the world. It gives immense power – the power to make the world a better place to live in! It’s just because of a handful (understatement, yes!) of selfish, power-hungry ‘leaders’ that politics has lost its sanctity . Get involved in politics of the country so that you make yourself heard and not leave the fate of the country to some party leaders. Who are party leaders after all? They are just citizens of the country – you are as much responsible as they are – the only point is that you need to VOTE!

Why do things like reservation come up? Its minority appeasement and nothing more! Everyone knows that. Why do they have to appease the minorities? The facts are simple. Its only the minorities who vote – and the guys in power know that. Whatever the govt does against the majority; the majority assumes to be blind and “curses” destiny/fate/God. But we bloody do not ealise that, we need to show them that we are also a part of the country – and we should show that not by celebrating the victory of Abhinav Bindra and Dhoni’s men but by voting and say “Hello! We are also citizens of this country”. The same applies to the minorities who’ve been suffering from the yoke of oppression since God knows when. They should realize that they’re as equal as the people who exploit them. They should stand up against hunger and poverty. They don’t realize the potency of the weapon in their hands… The power of electoral franchise!

Terrorism – India bled and hung its head down in shame at Mumbai on 26th of November – when ten-odd people held the commerical capital of India to ransom. More importantly, they did it where the most elite people of the country assemble! The Taj and Oberoi – the supposed hang out place for the guys who run the economy. The terrorists were making one fact clear. “Hello folks – see we got into your Taj and killed people. We can EASILY walk into your residential area and do it! Get it? So please stop iritating us for Kashmir – give that part to us” . They could have killed lakhs from the slums of Dharavi with half the investment. Then why did they choose to kill a few hundred and attack just the rich? The answer to all these riddles lie in the sole press of a button. The button that could change world. The buttons of the electronic voting machine!

You’ve time from April 16th to May 13th. Analyze the performance of your candidates, run a background check, and go vote! Spend 2-3 hours in the queue and elect your leader. You spend the same amount of time to watch a Bollywood movie. Time is precious. Use it… to vote!

Stand up. Speak out. Change!

P.S.

Heavily inspired by an e-mail from a friend.