Shruti Gupta in Washington, District of Columbia.
I have had to argue against remarks like, “You immigrants are taking our jobs,” and, “It’s unfortunate you look like a terrorist,” for most of my life in Georgia, but now that these kinds of insensitive remarks have taken a global platform, including by some presidential candidates, the South Asian community is in the perfect position to take a stronger stand.
According to the US Census Bureau, Asians have had the lowest voting rates compared to Non-Hispanic Whites, Blacks, and Hispanics in presidential elections since 2000. Our political silence continues to leave younger generations of South Asians scared to be different from their peers.
There is a clear gap in civic engagement between Asian Americans and other groups that must be addressed. That’s why the 2016 Washington Leadership Program Scholars are creating a social media campaign #SouthAsiansVote. We hope that, as South Asian American leaders engaged in politics, we can encourage our peers to get out and vote, both in presidential and local elections.
