why black lives matter is also the indian community’s responsibility
To put it simply, Indian Americans must care about Black lives because this is not a political issue we can choose to ignore, it’s a human rights issue that affects each and every one of us. However, Black Americans have given Indian community much more than we choose to acknowledge. For one, after the Civil Rights Movement, America passed the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965 which directly allowed South Asians to immigrate to America to seek better jobs and opportunities. Without the work put in by Black activists, America would not have fought to diversify and allow non-white immigrants to come here.
The movements sparked by Civil Rights injustices also inspired and empowered Indian Dalit communities. The Black Panthers in America propelled the Dalit Panthers movement in India. Fighting with similar motives, to not be outcast and discriminated against for race and caste, each group revolted against a system built to disadvantage them. We were once so moved by the revolutionary movements from Black Americans that we followed in their footsteps to fight against systemic oppression in our Motherland; we were heard and supported by Black Americans when we needed it. Now, we fail them by turning our cheek when they need our support. Indian Americans need to re-evaluate our history and realize how much more alike we are than different. We need to question why after starting revolutions in India, do we ignore the call to action in America.
As a first generation Indian American I see how my Indian peers take Black culture when it conveniences them. We dress like our favorite Black rappers, blast their music, adopt their vernacular, dance like them, even wrongfully say the N-word because we feel entitled to it. No longer can we as a community steal from a culture that has continually given us so much without supporting them in the BLM Movement with that same energy. Black lives matter because human lives matter. Indian Americans must stop appealing to some mythical ideal of whiteness and model minority status and begin to connect back to our roots of revolution and be the best allies to the Black community we can be.
-Contributed by Advaith’s sister, Niyati Bantval (https://www.linkedin.com/in/niyati-bantval/)