Appeal to the Indian American Community to Organize

 

Dear Friends,

 

I send my greetings to you for a successful, peaceful and happy new year!  Also would like to commend you on your survival and success in a land away from the motherland, a home away from home. Remember the tremendous amount of efforts, sacrifice, time, and energy you have put in to be where you are today since you came to this country. “To save permanent rights, temporary sacrifices were necessary” said Thomas Jefferson to William Eustis on January 14, 1809 in Washington.  What was said about two hundred years ago is still true and inspirational today. The years come and go and so do the elections. New governments are formed and parties alternate the power due to a bipartisan system. As a result, some of us have achieved great success as individuals as elected officials, business leaders, political appointees, but the Indian American community as an entity has not integrated and gained a significant clout enough to address the issues that are dear to them.

 

There are areas where we need to move forward, such as:

-Glass ceilings in our professional and educational opportunities;

-Transitioning the newcomers from India to mainstream society;

-Privileges for the elderly who migrated at a later age;

-Safety and security of the students coming from India in unprecedented numbers, many of whom are likely to be immigrants in the future;

-The criminals preying on an innocent law abiding population of Indian Americans in both white collar and hard core crimes;

-The ongoing insurance scams;

-The social harassment at work or schools due to the distinction;

 

Many of these can be corrected by being aware of the laws of the land and the culture, by getting help from various governmental agencies and sometimes legal actions. Due to the fear of losing immigrant status, the cost of legal actions or fear of resulting embarrassment in the community, people do not want to pursue these issues. They all need help. We are progressing in that direction but not as fast as we should have been. As we embark on a new decade this year, we hope that you will consider joining us to support the Indian American Community reach its greatest potential in American civic society through education about the U.S. political process, meaningful open dialogue and debate on issues critical to us, and increasing political advocacy on behalf of our community.

 

People of various ethnicities came to the US as immigrants. The Italians and Spanish came with Columbus. Later on French, English, African, Irish, German, Chinese, Korean, Indian, Vietnamese and others came. Some wanted to escape the tyranny and persecution in their homelands and some came in search of opportunities for a better life. All wanted to pursue the life endowed of the human rights as iterated in the Declaration of Independence by the American people from King George III of England. “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.”

 

Priorities of the generations of Indian Americans developed as the years went by. They can be roughly categorized as follows. 100 years ago, farming; 1950s and 1960s, education; 1970s and onward, education and professional development, family, children upbringing, and careers for children. Later on, it was Citizenship and voting rights, preservation and development of wealth, and security. Then it was political ambitions; leadership in businesses small, medium and very large corporations. The 2000s changed to active involvement in mainstream society in social and political fields.

 

 

Do you think there are areas of life where we have not reached our maximum potential yet?

The United States has given us the best opportunities to work and succeed. Do you believe all the fruits of your hard work, all the goals achieved by you, will be protected automatically? I do not think it is an automatic process. Several immigrant communities have organized to form groups to guard their interests and rights. The Indian-American community has also organized under various names and platforms. A name comes to me repeatedly which is nonpartisan and does not aim to do political fundraising. This association was formed 20 years ago and had up to 15 state level chapters all across the United States, from Massachusetts to Mississippi and from Washington to Los Angeles. It is the Indian American Forum for Political Education. Twenty years ago there were very few organizations of Indian Americans. Now there are many at various levels. The success of all of them is in keeping the mission simple, precise and clear and not encompassing every function. That will be the way to create a real “strength in the unity of diversity”.

 

The goals of IAFPE are to educate Indian Americans about the political process in the US, increase awareness through education, increase participation through awareness, and create political clout for the entire Indian American Community. There are many amongst us who are not citizens of the US yet, many who are citizens but did not register to vote, many who are registered voters but did not show up to the polls. By not fully participating in the political process, we miss many opportunities to stand as a group in the eyes of the elected officials at all levels of government - Federal, State, and County. Sometimes we have difficulty in defining what exactly we want from our elected representatives. Other times we hope things will work out automatically. In addition to the issues for mainstream America, we have our own areas of concerns. Because we are too busy working and supporting our families, we often forget that as a community we can play a large role in our own welfare and well-being.

 

For example, the IAFPE VA Chapter has organized the following event and activities:

-Voter registration drives at County Fairs;-held Congressional Receptions on Capitol Hill;

- joining hands with other groups to generate congressional support for  bills of mutual interest to the USA and India, such as the Nuclear Peace Treaty signed by both countries last year. - organized induction prayers at the State Capital in Richmond, each followed by a Legislative reception for the elected officials. - advocated on behalf victims of violent crimes to bring the culprits to justice by holding meetings with State Attorney’s office, another time held vigil and raised contribution for reward money to find the criminals of a fatal attack on Indian American shopkeeper; Met with high level immigration officers along with other organizations when some IT workers at a Federal facility in Texas were handcuffed and arrested for lack of continuation of their VISAs this resulted in relief.

Together, we can work to fully integrate our community into the mainstream civic process. We can make a difference by advocating for issues we care about. Together we can achieve more of the American Dream. I invite you to become a member of IAFPE Virginia and join us in our first meeting of the year to elect the officials for the term 2010 to 2012.

“I have a dream that one day all Indian Americans will become citizens and voters to participate in the political process, so they will be judged on the merits of their qualities and not the way they look and speak!”

Thank you very much! Jai Hind and God bless America!

 

Satish Korpe, P.E. January 14, 2010

 

[The writer is a professional Engineer and President of Potowmac Engineers Inc. for the last 25 years. Also he is a past president of Federation of Indian Associations, Indian American Forum for Political Education and the Marathi Kala Mandal. Please send your comments to Satish.korpe@verizon.net]