Anti-Brahminism and racism amongst Tamilians in USA.

A Tamil blogger used to write screeds about Sri Lankan issue. An unabashed Prabakaran worshipper he became distraught in the final days of the civil war in 2009. For once he dropped his posturing and wrote a blog critical of how Prabakaran caused untold misery to his fellow people and how his supporters turned a blind eye to it. The truce lasted few days. Once the war came to its gruesome end he again blogged and spewed venom. He railed against what he called "Brahmin-Bania" dominated media for saying that Prabakaran was dead. Like any good Dravidian ideologue his scapegoat was “Brahmin-bania” combo. It did not matter to him that Dinathanthi, Dinakaran, Sun TV the leading news media in Tamil Nadu are all non-Brahmin owned and they were all beaming pictures of Prabakaran's corpse. His favorite scuttlebutt is N.Ram, editor of Hindu. No reference of Ram would start without referring to his birth. I've never seen eye to eye with N.Ram on his strident anti-Americansism or his left wing ideals but never would I ascribe his ideas to his caste. What is ironical is N.Ram is a staunch supporter of Mandal and affirmative action. To add to the irony Ram was on the verge of being arrested by Jaya, a fellow Brahmin and Ram has appeared on DMK stages in the past. However the only area where he parts ways is on Sri Lanka and the ready made weapon to counter him is his birth. If this is not racism I need to be tutored.

Recently a DMK supporter was trying to highlight to me how Jaya enacted anti-conversion laws because she was Iyengar. It did not matter to him that the same Jaya arrested Sankaracharya and invited the wrath of hundreds of Brahmins. I asked him “would you think its possible she did it to please her then ally the BJP?”. Only silence was the reply. He later added “did she not announce in the Assembly that she is an ‘iyengar’?”. It did not matter to him that Karunanidhi repeats endlessly that he is a “shudra”, of course he would also then whine “if only I was a Brahmin then I would be appreciated”, “If only Stalin had been born to a Brahmin father”. It does not matter to MK or his idolaters that he was repeatedly elected CM and that his son is in line to the chief ministership. When DMK shamelessly aligns with BJP its strategy if Jaya aligns with BJP its "Brahminical" affinity. DMK fanatics would set a record in talking from both ends of their mouth with a poker face.

Even moving beyond the abstract to the immediate and personal I find a distasteful poisonous attitude. Another person tried to illustrate what he called "Brahminical" attitude. Citing a mutual acquaintance that person said “what he/she did was selfish and only smacks of what is typical of a Brahmin”. I was flabbergasted at the casteism. I cited incidents of similar nature amongst my extended family. Being selfish and petty is not the preserve of any particular caste but he would have none of it. Yet another time I got a bone chilling diktat “I don’t personally dislike them except that I want them to keep within their limits”. I was just stupefied at such a blatant threat that is practically fascist.

Recently Naganathan, Planning commission member and friend of MK, wrote a diatribe on the eve of Diwali spinning a yarn about how Diwali is an “Aryan” conspiracy and how it is designed to defraud Tamilians of millions of rupees in the name of Diwali purchases. Again I reached to my good friend and the reply “yes he is right and I support him”. It did not for a minute register with him that the thousands who spend money do so in shops owned by hundreds of ethnically diverse owners (of whom Brahmins are just a fraction). What is worse is that a government employee heading a commission freely writes such casteist propaganda did not even strike as unconstitutional and blatant discrimination. The person I asked is a US resident for 12 years and would be ready to attribute to 'racial discrimination' any imagined slight from Americans. Yet to his own fellow Tamils he gladly gives the 'middle finger'.

Tamil Sangams are the worst offenders in this regard. The invitees, prominent people from Tamil Nadu, often are unabashed Brahmin haters. They often peddle their shopworn ideologies of racial pride, Tamil identity etc here. Suba.Veerapandian, a DK leader, when he spoke at a Tamilian gathering, in Virginia, repeated his usual racial canard. He grandiosely suggested “even if you and your progeny live for hundreds of years in USA you will still be Tamils and NOT Americans”. It’s a stupidity that even an American would dare not say. But then this is from a guy whose organization firmly believes and propagates that a Brahmin, a Tamil speaking one at that and who might have lived in Tamil Nadu for generations, is not a Tamilian. Suba.Vi is known to manhandle his opponents when he can get away with it, unfortunately he could not do it in USA.

Once Seeman was the invitee at a FeTNA annual celebration. I had the misfortune of watching a YouTube clipping of his speech delivered in Tamil Nadu. He had just been released from jail (arrested by a non-brahmin CM). With his legs spread, his eyes blood shot with hatred, his voice rising and nerves visible he growled “if Brahmin owned Dinamalar writes that my speech was inflammatory will you arrest me” (of course his choice of casteist slur was far more crude). The camera then panned to the audience. A section seated on chairs and well dressed, apparently educated, clapped hands enthusiastically. Nobody winced at such caste hatred, that too without any grounds. I was reminded of Alfred Dreyfus affair. This is the sort of person that FeTNA chooses to invite.

A group of Tamils recently wrote a letter to Barack Obama cautioning him not to appoint Indians who might have ties to BJP/RSS/VHP because they might not be ‘secularists’. One of the signatories is a strong supporter of E.V.Ramasamy Naicker. EVR is a rabid Brahmin hater whose remarks would certainly rank as “hate speech”. What is worse EVR’s organization prohibits Brahmins from becoming members. I chuckled to myself thinking if this is not a case of “pot calling the kettle black” what else could be? Past invitees of FeTNA have included card carrying members of DK. If one goes through web postings of DK one would shudder to think that but for the restraining hand of law and order in India they would gleefully enact a holocaust. Also, it’s not co-incidental that most of these people are pro-Palestinian (in reality anti-Semites who disguise it as pro-Palestinians). I’d be very surprised if they could point to Israel on a map or know anything of its history.

This hatred cuts across educational levels and longevity in USA. A resident of USA for many years would celebrate EVR birthday wearing a black shirt and pose for photographs. Interestingly DK people wear black shirts much like the SS brown shirts of Hitler’s Germany or the Mussolini’s Brown shirts. DK is an organization whose venom would make a rattle snake bite look like a gentle caress. It is my firm belief that DK and RSS are two sides of the same coin, racial hatred. This is the same organization that had proclaimed an agitation to way lay Brahmins and to cut their sacred thread. This agitation was indeed carried out in Tanjore and I do know the affected person. A DK official recently blogged “Brahmin’s were lucky that Narendra Modi is not Brahmin else for the pogrom he unleashed in Gujarat the Brahmin in Kanyakumari would have had to pay with his life”. Chilling words those are. It is this organization that the good professor supports and attends meetings. 

When the Tamil Unicode controversy started the Tamil community in US worked itself into a lather and as self-appointed custodians of Tamil literature (most lack any diverse knowledge of any literature) let loose a volcanic rage against, what else, 'Brahminical Conspiracy'. It does not matter that but for U.V.Swaminatha Iyer many ancient Tamil literature scripts would have vanished. It does not matter that many Brahmin authors have richly contributed to Tamil literature. These are the people who think by writing "Washington" as "வாசிங்டன்" they are protecting Tamil.

A US resident Tamilian posts a comment calling Jaya as anti-Tamil. No guesses for whom he considers as the archangel of Tamilians and Tamil. A group of Tamilians, not incidentally everyone was DMK/ DK affiliated. Not a single one batted an eyelid that MK was splurging 1000 crores while Tamil University (established by, as MK never tires of saying, a Malayalee) could not even pay salaries to its staff and its buildings were dilapidated. So what makes Jaya anti-Tamil? She arrested Vaiko. Oh that Vaiko who cries hoarse about their beloved Eelam cause. Oh Jaya said Prabakaran (a proclaimed offender by Indian Government for murdering Rajiv) should be arrested. Who cares what MK said about Prabakaran. When every fig leaf is torn off the ugly head of racism rears its head, Jaya is Brahmin and Brahmins are not Tamilians ipso facto Jaya is anti-Tamil. 


Living in a multi-cultural society, enjoying the protections of freedoms enshrined in the US constitution, being educated, working at pretty well paid jobs, expecting fair treatment as human beings from Americans, expecting fair treatment at work, expecting respect and fairness in all walks of life these same people refuse to address their own innate racism. So one wonders what, if at all, can help them see? Or are we paying the price for not stemming the venom that has vitiated Tamil society for 50 years?