To the citizens of India,
The worst of all evils in the world is the generalization and dehumanization of a particular group in the world. It was done to Africans, Jews during the Holocaust, Indians during British rule, and the Palestinians have been subjected to this for decades.
While I can understand the neutral geopolitical stance taken by the government of India since the state of Israel has provided us with arms and ammunition during the Kargil war.
I do not believe that we owe Russia and Israel anything more than that. The abstention during the UN vote was our official way of paying them back.
The neutral stance taken by the Indian state is not my cause of concern. My primary cause of concern is that many Indians have started to show blind solidarity with Israel despite the fact that the IDF has massacred more than 10,000 innocent civilians in a month.
I have not seen people getting this sentimental about a geopolitical ally. Soon it became clear that this was the projection of Islamophobia that runs deep in our country.
Hate mixed with ignorance has led us to perceive Palestinians as a group of Islamic extremists rather than recognizing them as colonized people.
You will be shocked to know that India was one of the first non-Arab nations to recognize Palestine as a state. Even the former prime minister, Atal Bihari Vajpayee said that Israel must free Palestine and finalize a two-state solution.
India took this political stand because we understand the mess created by the British Empire. We have always recognized Palestine as a colonized state that deserves freedom.
That is why it blows my mind when Indians dehumanize Palestinians because of some religious insecurity. Once Indians also used to be dehumanized in a similar fashion by the British and the Western world.
“I hate Indians. They are a beastly people with a beastly religion . . . Let the Viceroy sit on the back of a giant elephant and trample Gandhi into the dirt.” – Winston Churchill
Citizens who have reconciled with the traumatic colonial past of our country will never dehumanize innocent Palestinians. Those who have not will find someone to blame or someone to praise.
Accepting the Western monopoly on the word terror, recognizing colonial instruments like the UN, speaking fluent English, praising an apartheid state, hating Palestinians, and buying luxurious commodities will not make you white.
I think many Indians seek recognition from the West because of their own insecurity. When you are insecure about your culture and place in the world, you look at others. If you are certain about your place then you never need to worry about what others think about you.
You will always be a person of color for the Western nations. I am not saying that this makes Westerners your enemy, but you need to realize that you can be subject to racism. That is why you need to be conscious of your ethnicity.
Just like workers need to be conscious of their class, women need to know about patriarchy, lower caste people need to know about the injustice of the caste system, etc.
Instead of seeking recognition from the Western world, we need to become conscious of our country’s history and the values that set the foundation of a democratic country.
We must be aware of the struggles of our ancestors in their mission to liberate India while upholding secular values.
With warm regards and hope for a brighter future,
Chirag Saxena