- Such news headlines make for a gut-wrenching, depressing, and deeply frustrating sense of helplessness that cannot be explained in plain words. Come to think of it, India is deeply appreciated and lauded worldwide for showcasing inclusivity everywhere, despite possessing such diverse ethnicities, languages, practices, religions, and belief systems spread over a large swath of landscape. However, what binds us is the rich heritage, legacy, culture, and tradition that have been passed on since time immemorial. The Indian Constitution mandates certain rights irrespective of class, creed, and caste that cannot be allowed to be violated by a few fringe elements in the name of the community.
PC: LinkedIn
- Not for nothing, it is mentioned that India is a country inhabited by several countries but living harmoniously under one distinct identity as Indians. We stand united when it comes to matters of sovereignty, independence, and freedom. No questions asked. However, racism of any nature is condemnable. Sadly, three lynchings in December alone raise pertinent questions that cannot be ignored. As reported, another day, another state, another horrific lynching – the third in December 2025. The year ended on a shameful and scary note with the creeping normalization of othering. Can youngsters and working people not move around in their own country without fear and safety? The most fundamental right for any citizen in a democratic country.
PC: UC Berkeley Research
- The 24-year-old from Tripura, stabbed by a group of Uttarakhandis in Dehradun, was an MBA student in the city for a year. He met racist slurs with calm, but was fatally wounded in a hate crime. The two migrant workers lynched, a 19/20-year-old Bengali in Odisha and a 31-year-old Chhattisgarhi in Kerala, were called Bangladeshi, a charge risking the safety of migrants anywhere in the country. African and Northeast Indian students and workers have for decades faced racism in even the heart of Delhi and across northern states. No government has recognized racism or hate crime; police invariably excuse dangerous views and such extreme violence as stray incidents, which they are not. What is visible are patterns of this racism and othering.
PC: Human Rights Watch
- Unaddressed, it’s finding brute expression more frequently. Indian students themselves are at the receiving end of racism, especially in Trump’s America. Privileged and upper-class Indians have always been startled to find themselves classified as coloured in Western contexts – lumped together with the very communities many of them look down upon – but now are being MAGA-othered like never before. Yet, while we ourselves are victims in other lands, we overlook racist attitudes that mark our own people. For too long now, our fellow citizens from the Northeast have been subjected to racial abuse that hasn’t been satisfactorily addressed. Racial abuse is a systemic poison. Its spread must be acted upon determinedly by the government authorities. Period.
