Hanging on to the American Dream

The Indian American community is weighing its options on issues from financial stability to immigrant status to abortion rights, to determine a course of action, come November 5

On an unseasonably warm evening for the last week of October, Kamala Harris, along with former president Barack Obama and music legend Bruce Springsteen, rocked a stadium filled to capacity in an Atlanta suburb known as the most diverse square mile in America. The focus was on the majority population.

The Atlanta metro area is home to nearly 150,000 Indian Americans who have been rallying support for Harris. But if Indian Americans have been waiting for Kamala chitti, she has yet to make an appearance in the 2024 U.S. presidential campaign.

When Harris was running for vice president in 2020, her connection to the Indian American community was palpable. A video of her making dosas with actor-screenwriter Mindy Kaling went viral. Her sister and niece shared stories about her Chennai roots. Author and model Padma Lakshmi and YouTube star Lilly Singh endorsed her as one of their own, as the Indian heritage woman who had made it.

Once Harris emerged as the Democratic nominee earlier this year, they rallied, enthused by finding representation. The South Asian Women for Harris Zoom call, the first of her campaign, drew over 9,000 attendees — a turnout so vast that Zoom had to adjust its limits. Many of these women went on to host fundraisers, write postcards, change their social media profiles to ‘I support Kamala’, and share memes like, ‘In India, Kamala means lotus. In America, Kamala means POTUS’. Harris’ now-famous quip, “You think you just fell out of a coconut tree?” drew chuckles with the intimacy of an inside joke that wove a cultural bond.

Tokenistic gestures

But if the Indian American voters are looking for more, Harris is no longer wearing her heritage on her sleeve. She talked about her mother’s journey from Chennai to California at the Democratic National Convention, but has refused to be drawn into identity labels. A wise move for a candidate who vows to be a president for all Americans, but for many Indian Americans, it feels like she has drifted away from the representative figure they had embraced. As her engagement with the community has shifted, so has theirs with her. Many are now looking at her in the harsh light of real-life issues.

Meanwhile, Donald Trump’s engagement with Indian Americans has been a show of its own. In a recent viral video, he was seen handing fries to an Indian American couple at a McDonald’s drive-through. The man greeted him with a “namaste”, and the woman thanked him for “taking a bullet for them”. We now know that the scene was staged, but it managed to strike a chord. Trump has not shied away from playing up his ties with India. It also helps that Howdy Modi events are still fresh in the minds of those who see the Trump-Modi connection as a bridge to their own roots and religious identity. One of Trump’s moves was bringing the Indian-origin Usha Vance — wife of his running mate J.D. Vance — into the spotlight, even though there is no love lost between him and former presidential candidate Nikki Haley, also a daughter of Indian immigrants.

The tokenism, though, has not managed to sway many Indian Americans who question Trump’s ability to be a leader and a president for all Americans with his criminal convictions, sexual misconduct, and anti-immigrant rhetoric. In contrast, Harris has served as public prosecutor and California’s attorney general. At a recent rally, former first lady Michelle Obama questioned the expectation from Harris to be “flawless” while Trump gets away with being “lawless”.

In the grand theatrics of choosing a candidate for the world’s most powerful position, the most candid political debates are still happening on Indian American WhatsApp groups. An example:

A: One should have the guts to support Trump.

B: That’s why he committed 88 felonies.

A: You keep changing the number of felonies by the hour. At least ask your AI tool the right questions before sharing information.

B: Trump’s felonies are countless. I am generous about the count.

A: Kamala cannot count on the negative votes for Trump. She needs to get her act together.

B: There is a reason why Republican leaders are endorsing Kamala! Trump couldn’t even keep his VP on his side!

A: Ignorance is bliss for Kamala. So, she makes promises which are of no use.

B: No taxes, no trade, no immigration, no diversity, just build a beautiful wall, increase tariffs, and bomb the hell out of all enemies...impressive sales pitch!

In true Indian fashion, most conversations typically end with calls to rise above the mundane and find peace in spiritual bliss.

C: Instead of wasting our time, let’s join an Art of Living session this weekend, friends. We do not know that there is a whole different side within us. We simply eat, reproduce, and die one day without ever tasting the core of our lives.

But meditation sessions are wasted right now on Indians who came to America chasing higher education, successful careers, and affluent lifestyles for their families. Economy and taxation are occupying their sleeping and waking — and meditating — hours.

A case of survival

In their 50-odd years of presence in America, Indian voters have traditionally leaned Democrat, seeing themselves as a minority group that needs social justice, equality, and protection against discrimination. But as the community’s affluence grows — along with its population — and as the focus shifts from surviving to thriving, a slow but steady drift towards the GOP has begun, driven by concerns over economic policy and taxes. High inflation and the cost of living, rising since the pandemic, are pushing them, especially business owners, to think of survival in stark terms.

Yet, for many others, survival is not just about economic growth. Trump’s anti-immigrant rhetoric is forcing them to reframe survival in a broader sense as their existence in this country feels at stake. While the majority of Indian Americans are acutely aware of their immigrant status and support immigration reform, others question illegal immigration which feels disrespectful to their journey of navigating the tough process of legal citizenship.

With the reversal of Roe v. Wade, reproductive rights have become a pressing issue this election cycle. The Harris camp’s promise to restore reproductive autonomy resonates with women, including Indian Americans, creating a wide gender gap in voting. This gap has widened with more men, Indian Americans included, supporting Trump as they play into the masculine roles that Republicans typify.

Social justice and Gaza crisis

Young Indian Americans, especially first-time voters, are focused on policies concerning social justice, LGBTQIA+ rights, gun safety, women’s rights, and climate action, and support Harris. These young adults, who have lived through school shootings and emergency drills, view gun safety as non-negotiable. Many have seen peers their age die, have been victims of hate crimes, or live with the fear of violence hitting close to home.

A considerable number of these young voters, whose world view is increasingly interconnected, view the conflict in Gaza as more than distant suffering. For the uncommitted or the covetable ‘persuadable voters’ among them, the candidates’ stance on global conflicts has become central to their choice. And yet, as election day draws near with no policy change in sight, they are being forced to make a choice, neither of which feels right.

In these times of shifting voting loyalties, intergenerational divide within families has emerged, with younger members voting differently from their parents. There are Democrat-leaning children with Republican-leaning parents and vice versa — an evolution that points to the growing political engagement with the country.

Today, Kamala chitti feels distant for most Indian Americans. But caught between the pride of brown representation and the wariness of identity politics, and the binary of the lawless and the flawless, the answer for them lies in negotiating this contentious presidential race with the same focus on personal priorities that made them chase the American Dream.

The writer is deputy editor, Khabar magazine, and USC Annenberg Fellow for Writing and Community Storytelling.

Talking numbers

• With a voter turnout rate of 71% in 2020 and an expected turnout rate of 90% in 2024 — much higher than the national average of 66% — Indian Americans are more politically engaged than any other immigrant group (AAPI Data)

• Indian Americans have the highest median household income of any ethnic group at around $120,000 annually — far above the national average of $70,000 (Pew, 2021)

• About 75% of Indian Americans have a Bachelor’s degree or higher, compared to the national average of 33% (Pew, 2021)

• The number of Indian Americans identifying as Democrats has reduced from 56% in 2020 to 47% in 2024; while the number of those identifying as Republicans has increased from 15% in 2020 to 21% in 2024 (Indian American Attitudes Survey (IAAS), 2024)

• About 67% of Indian American women will be voting for Harris; and about 48% of under-40 Indian American males will be voting for Trump — a sharp contrast from the 70% who voted for Biden in 2020 (IAAS, 2024)

• Harris is leading Trump by 12 points in women’s vote. Trump is leading Harris by 14 points in men’s vote (a recent poll by The New York Times)

Published - October 30, 2024 06:11 pm IST