Why aren’t white Americans hyphenated Americans? Aren’t they European Americans?
By Nalini Britto
On the evening of February 22, 2017, Srinivas Kuchibhotla, 32, sat in a bar enjoying a glass of beer, along with his friend Alok Madasani (also 32) after a hard day’s work.
Minutes later they were shot by a white American, a former Navy veteran. The shooting took the life of Kuchibhotla, while Madasani survived with minor injuries. Another patron, Ian Grillot, 24, was also shot, as he was trying to stop the killing spree.
The killer, Adam W. Purinton, is being described as a “white nationalist” and the murder is now termed a hate crime.
The gun violence in Olathe, Kansas, raises a lot of questions related to identities.
Is Grillot also a white nationalist? What makes Grillot different from the murderer? Why did Purinton ask Grillot to stick with him instead of standing up for the Indians? Was it because of color of their skin? Because they were Americans, while the “brown” guys in the bar were not?
This incident has sparked a growing concern among the Indians who have made America their choice of home. What and who is an American? Who decides who the real American is? Is the color of one’s skin the deciding factor?
In my 16 years of living in the US, I always thought of the United States as a melting pot, until I heard someone on TV call it a “Salad Bowl” instead. Made a lot of sense! The United States is no longer a melting pot because one does not have to lose his or her identity and “melt” in to fit in.
The United States is no longer a melting pot because one does not have to lose his or her identity and “melt” in to fit in.
Just as how every ingredient in a salad bowl has its own color, shape and taste, you can hold on to your own identity and become an ingredient in a salad bowl enhancing the flavor of the salad. America does not and will not belong to any one people. It is and has always been a land of immigrants. Yes, there are many successful immigrants that have made this country the wonderful land of milk and honey. And Indians have only added sweetness to this great land of opportunity.
When my 1st grader came home from school one afternoon and was talking to me, she said, “the American girl in my class…” I asked her, “What do you mean American girl?” She, very innocently, said: “the girl with the golden hair.”
I was taken in by surprise. What made her think of the golden haired girl as “American”? I then asked her who she thought she was, and she said: “I’m Indian.”
I did spend quite some time wondering how she has decided on her own that an American equals golden hair. It is not her fault. It is what is being said all around her. We refer to blacks as African Americans, Spanish people as Hispanic Americans, Chinese as Asian Americans, and Indians as Indian Americans, and so on.
Even the original Americans the Natives are referred to as Native Americans. But the entire white race is put together and called Caucasians. Why can’t they be referred to as European Americans? If blacks are called African Americans because they come from that part of the world, clearly the white races come mostly from European countries and they should be addressed as European Americans. When all races are hyphenated Americans, including the natives why not the white race? Why aren’t they hyphenated?
… the entire white race is put together and called Caucasians. Why can’t they be referred to as European Americans?
I told my daughters they are Americans, just like the golden haired girls and boys, and for that matter all the kids in that class were Americans. I told my daughters they are American because they were born in this country. It is theirs as much as anyone else’s. Today my daughters would say they are Americans, not Indian Americans, but just plain Americans.
Indians do not come to America fleeing a dictator, or seeking asylum. They come here, not for opportunities, but for “better” opportunities. Most Indians who come to America are from middle class families, who want to make a better life than what they have back home.
The rich upper class in India may come to America for a graduate degree from a top university, but they go back because life in India for them is a lot of luxury. They would never have a cook, a driver and a maid here in America. They may come here for a holiday, but they never choose to stay.
But for the middle class Indian, America is a land that makes him realize his dreams of having his own piece of land back home. Indians who come to America live a quiet life and work very hard. Sometimes, the fear of the visa status, also force them to work hard. They notice their coworkers leave their offices when the time is up, but they will stay back and finish what they have to simply because of their commitment to the job and also due to the status of their visas.
Indians have only added value to every sector of industry that they have worked in. As doctors, scientists, engineers, businessmen and IT professionals, they contribute to the growth of the nation. Crime rate among them is relatively low. And they haven’t indulged in any activity that posed a threat to the national security of the country.
It is alarming that an incident like Olathe has actually caused fear in the minds of many fellow Indians. There is chatter among the Indians to stay away from public places, not speak their native language in public, not wear their traditional wear in public and pretty much try and become as invisible as possible. My question to every Indian in this country is, Why?
We cannot let an uneducated, ill-informed murderer decide how we are going to live our lives.
We cannot let an uneducated, ill-informed murderer decide how we are going to live our lives.
Are we going to cave in to fear and let the hate-mongers win?
Are we going to teach our children to be uncomfortable in their skin?
Are we sending a message to the world that we are a people who believe in hiding because we are fearful?
We come from a country that is deeply divided based on the caste system. We should know how painful it is to be discriminated based on one’s belief. Here we are discriminated based on the color of our skin! How can we keep quiet?
If we do not stand up and go out and show ourselves as a people who will not keep quiet when attacked, how can we expect the Ian Grillots to feel proud that he stood for a fellow Indian?
If we do not address the issue and shy away from being Indian in public, how can we expect another Grillot to come and stand beside us in times of trouble?
We are Americans and we can be Indian, while being American. Like the salad bowl, we should wear our Indian culture, pride and heritage proudly on our sleeve and yet put our hand on our hearts and sing the American national anthem because after all it was a choice we made.
We are Americans and we can be Indian, while being American.
We choose to become part of the American society and its value system. The beautiful thing about this country is you don’t have to become someone else. You can be yourself, and yet be a symbol of America because America is built on our shoulders. This country is mine and yours as much as it is Donald Trump’s.
We come from a nation that overthrew an entire empire with no guns, or war or violence. We come from a country that is deeply rooted in different beliefs, languages, religions. How can we let the color of our skin decide how we should behave?
We can all agree that we are making a life for our children, the next generation, who will make this country their home (the only one they will know) and for the children of our children, and so on. If we do not stand up for our rights, our children will never learn to stand up too.
Every 1st grader will come home and talk of an American as a golden-haired boy or girl. The change has to start with us. We have to tell ourselves that we are American as much as the white lady next door, or the black lady opposite my house.
Being American is not only about wearing shorts, tank tops or jeans and barbecues. It is also about wearing your own traditional clothes and eating with your hands. The day we stand tall and look up and walk straight with a backbone to support our own causes, we will see our children do the same. After all they will inherit this land from us, just as how the “white” nationalist inherited it from his forefathers.
Now if a native of America told you to get out of his land? Well, that’s for another day…
(The writer is an immigrant from Bangalore, India.)