Two recent incidents of racial abuse targeted at individuals from two northeastern states highlight the ugly reality of thriving racism in the country. The fact that one occurred in the Capital and the other in Gorakhpur, Uttar Pradesh, suggests racist tendencies remain the same irrespective of the milieu. And it spares no one — the target of abuse in the latter case is a medical student at AIIMS Gorakhpur.
This is just the everyday racism people from the northeastern states
Two recent incidents of racial abuse targeted at individuals from two northeastern states highlight the ugly reality of thriving racism in the country. The fact that one occurred in the Capital and the other in Gorakhpur, Uttar Pradesh, suggests racist tendencies remain the same irrespective of the milieu. And it spares no one — the target of abuse in the latter case is a medical student at AIIMS Gorakhpur.
This is just the everyday racism people from the northeastern states often face. This “garden-variety” racism can slip into more brutal territory. The killing of Anjel Chakma in Dehradun last December is the latest example of the worst form such bigotry can take. Chakma was stabbed after he protested against racial slurs directed at him and his brother. Before that, the deaths of Richard Loitam, Nido Taniam, and Akha Salouni, among others, were horrifying illustrations of dehumanising racism that Indians meted out to other Indians. With rising migration, such discrimination is becoming entrenched and widespread.
The larger public’s complicity is evident in its failure to stand up to racists and demand corrective measures. India ratified the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination close to six decades ago, but the problem has been allowed to fester. For a country that has long been the target of racism, this is indefensible. The problem must be addressed with the seriousness it deserves — expert recommendations, especially those made by the Bezbaruah Committee, including on new legislation against racial hate, need urgent consideration.
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