Indian-American Congressman Shri Thanedar, a Democrat from Michigan, has spoken out against “all Hinduphobia” and racism in the United States after becoming the target of a wave of hateful rhetoric over the weekend.
The backlash came after Thanedar, born in Karnataka, India, voiced his support for the H-1B visa program and advocated for increasing legal immigration to maintain America’s competitive edge in innovation. “Unfortunately, the H1-B visa discourse has been hijacked by MAGA racism and xenophobia,” he said.
“By increasing H1-B visas and streamlining the H1-B and green card process, America maintains our edge on innovation & discovery,” Thanedar wrote in a follow-up tweet.
{{/usCountry}}“By increasing H1-B visas and streamlining the H1-B and green card process, America maintains our edge on innovation & discovery,” Thanedar wrote in a follow-up tweet.
{{/usCountry}}MAGA xenophobia bullies Thanedar
In response to his remarks, Thanedar was subjected to a barrage of racist and xenophobic comments, including calls for him to “go back to India.” Social media posts were filled with vitriol, with one user writing, “Can I buy you a ticket to Mumbai? One way, of course,” while another said, “You need to be denaturalized and deported.”
Thanedar responded to the hateful rhetoric by introducing a bipartisan resolution condemning Hinduphobia. He stated, “Racism in America is still alive and well, and we must stand up to it together. Just read the replies to any recent post that includes ‘H-1B’ to see the deplorable rhetoric targeting Indian Americans.”
“That's why I introduced a bipartisan resolution condemning all Hinduphobia.”
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MAGA hardliners target Indian workers
The H-1B visa program, which allows highly skilled foreign workers to work temporarily in the United States, has long been a contentious issue. Critics, particularly from MAGA circles, argue that the program undercuts American wages and replaces domestic workers with foreign labor, despite safeguards in place to prevent such misuse. Indians, who receive the majority of H-1B visas, have become a specific target.
Some critics questioned the dominance of Indian workers in the program, ignoring factors like India’s large population, English proficiency, and established pipelines for Indian students at U.S. universities.
“Our American culture has venerated mediocrity over excellence for way too long,” Vivek Ramaswamy stated, adding, “A culture that celebrates the prom queen over the math Olympiad champ…will not produce the best engineers.”