A Study of Bobby Jindal. Bilal Ahmed, in Monday's Souciant.
- In similarly abstract terms, Jindal can also be readily cited as an exemplar for self-denying American racists. As the most educated and privileged minority, Indian-Americans have become touted as proof that the American Dream is still alive, and that other minorities are personally at fault for not achieving it. Haley articulated this viewpoint perfectly at the Republican National Convention last August, when she stated that “[her] parents loved that when they came to America, if you worked hard, the only things that could stop you were the limits you placed on yourself.”
I may just be a total pessimist, but I no longer think that this is true in America. It may be more plausible to achieve success than in other countries, it is becoming increasingly hard for me to believe that anyone can do anything they set their mind to. Furthermore, I think class has a much larger impact on chances for success than race or immigration status.
I know very little about Bobby Jindal, but it seems that he was born wealthy and privileged and that status allowed him to achieve the things that he did. That status overruled his Indian or immigrant status and gave him the chance to obtain the "White Indian" status. I'm sure we wouldn't be reading his story if he had been the exact same person not born of privilege.
- Because Jindal is a political leader in the American south, questions of race obviously need to be addressed. Should Jindal’s success, and of those like him such as South Carolinian Governor Nicki Haley (birth name: Nimrata Nikki Randhawa), be taken as an indication that Indians are now considered “white”? And if so, how did that happen, and what are the consequences?
I think their success should be taken as an indication that the American South isn't overtly more or less racist than most other parts of the nation. I grew up in the North, in Michigan and I moved to the south a couple of years ago. My experience has been that there is just as much racism in Michigan as there is in the Carolina's. The difference is that in the Carolina's people wear it on their sleeves more often, while in Michigan it's only whispered. In the south it's a bumper-sticker, in the North it's something that creeps out in conversation when someone has had too much to drink.
I know that cliffelam is a Jindal fan. Any thoughts on this Cliff?
@thenewgreen Hey, author here! I would absolutely agree that the differences between different areas of the country when it comes to racism aren't that astonishing. Except that Northerner city-folk (like in the Northeast Corridor) like to define their post-racialism against the South.
Thanks for responding to my comment, I enjoyed the piece. Glad we found common ground.