We at the Mutiny don’t talk as much as we should about the desi presence in the central United States. If you’ve wandered through the heartland you know that desis are everywhere, principally thanks to the hotel business. And then of course there are the major cities like Houston, Dallas or Denver where I know we have plenty of readers.
Indian corporations are ahead of us in this regard, as witnessed by the following item from Alabama. Now, for a few years the Deep South has been a hub for foreign investment. There’s an enormous Nissan plant in Jackson, Miss., and a Hyundai plant in Montgomery, Ala., that have created thousands of jobs. Part of what draws these firms is the abundance of cheap skilled labor marooned by the manufacturing recession, as well as the anti-union laws. Still, anyone who’s spent time in the South knows that foreign investment has wrought some powerful economic and cultural changes.
But Indian firms? Well, ITC Infotech has just committed to open its third US location in Birmingham, where it hopes to ramp up to $100m in annual business. And Alabama authorities hope this will start a flood of Indian investment:
ITC is the first company to announce plans to locate in the state since the establishment of the Alabama-India Business Partnership, a group set up to stimulate economic activity and investment. More are expected follow.
Automotive parts maker Span Industries has indicated it wants to come to Birmingham, as has another Indian auto parts manufacturer and a biotechnology firm, said Anil Agarwal, president of AK-Global Solutions Inc. and founder of the Alabama India Business Partnership.
“In the next five to 10 years, we will be doing the same thing we are doing for the Indian companies as we are doing for the Japanese and Korean companies today,” Agarwal said…
I’m all in favor of this sort of investment. But one thing that always amuses me in these stories is the special type of boosterism that they breed, in which the investment origin and destination are touted as perfect partners because they match up so well culturally:
Not only does Birmingham offer a geographical hub on which to build a solid Southeastern presence, Agarwal says, but culturally the two communities share several common denominators.
For instance, Agarwal says, both Alabama and India have strong agricultural backgrounds that transitioned to a manufacturing base and only relatively recently have begun to shift into research in areas such as biomedical science and biotechnology.
“They also both have very traditional family values,” making India and Alabama compatible business partners, Agarwal says.
Meaning vaat exactly, Agarwal-saheb? I know some families down South that are anything but traditional. And those Baptist churches every twenty yards don’t leave much room for masjids and mandirs. What the regions really share is humidity, verandas, and big ol’ flying cockroaches. I trust Agarwal-uncle wasn’t trying to allude to something more sinister — Old times there are not forgotten — and instead look forward to a growing desi role in the cosmopolitan revitalization of the South.
“Alabama-India Business Partnership”
Seriously…?
And not to bring the marriage thread here (really), but I couldn’t help it:
…one thing that always amuses me in these stories is the special type of boosterism that they breed, in which the investment origin and destination are touted as perfect partners because they match up so well culturally:
Perhaps I read one-too-many comments per today’s marriage posts… But biotechnology AND traditional family values? Pakka!
I trust Agarwal-uncle wasn’t trying to allude to something more sinister — Old times there are not forgotten
I know this is anecdotal but I’ve faced more racism in NJ, Detroit and NY than in ‘bama. I’ve lived there for about 4 yrs. I ride a bike and I visit all kinds of towns in the remote countryside. How remote? How abt a motel sign that says “Now featuring color tvs in all rooms” 😉
You guys should also know that cities like Huntsville for example, have had a huge technological base since the ’50s… Back in the cold war days, Huntsville had the most number of nukes targetted on it after NY, DC and Norad.
By traditional family values I guess Agarwal meant anti – gay marriage. Can’t think of anything else.
And child marriage (yes, it happens in Alabama), traditional submissive women and other well-entrenched heirarchies.
Great post Siddhartha. I’m sure this won’t invoke passions the way a post on arranged marriage or Arundhati Roy would, but this (along with your previous Mittal post) is in many ways more significant than meets the eye–as it exposes peculiar cultural clashs occuring in the NWO due to globalization.
And of course it is very funny. I wouldn’t read too much into the ITC Infotech comments as corporations, with few exceptions (Border’s CEO and Cypress Semiconductor CEO come to mind), speak in the most banal, diplomatic language available.
But you really have your hand on the pulse of some of the most intersting business/cultural developments.
I know that Alabama’s past isnt very clean. But then India isnt really a beacon of human rights itself. So the two places do have that in common.
I have lived in Dallas for 11 years and I see the Baptist Churches on every corner. I never saw these many “mandirs” or ‘masjid’s growing up in India. This region is definately more “religious” than any part of India. But then one thing I have noticed that in the pantheon of Gods the Americans have the “Almightly Greenback” preety much at the top. (Baptist may not admit to this but they know 🙂 ) Money is a great level-er !!!
And since there is not a lot of space for ‘madir’s here, I all the more like the fact that more and more international businesses are coming down to the south. That is the only way the people here will get to interact with the world, get proseperous and that will automatically create space for those ‘mandir’s and ‘masjid’s.
So, I just love this development.
“…cosmopolitan revitalization of the South”
Are you f*&^ing kidding me? Cosmopolitan and South should not ever be used in the same sentence.
and why not?
b/c cosmopolitan implies an degree of sophistication, class, wealth, worldliness, and education.
last time i checked the statistics, the south was at the bottom of the tier in terms of education and wealth. Extrapolating from that, combined with my observations, the south is also in the pits for: – class (think confed*rate flags in car windows); – sophistication (still trying to think of the last time i heard anything sophisticated from the great state of Miss.); and – worldliness (didn’t have too many southerners in my foreign exchange programs, if any, and there aren’t a lot of Ethiopian restaurants in Alabama).
then add in the ever present and underlying racism (think of the black guy dragged behind the truck to death, never would happen in Vermont or Minnesotta or Chicago)
finally, didn’t the south go for bush in 2000 and 2004? the south chose a retaded hillbily as president, not a wordly person. bush couldn’t even name most world leaders (and still probably can’t without help).
yeah, i am stereotyping, i am sure there are some expatriates from developed nations living (temporarily) in atlanta, but by and large, most southerners are not “cosmopolitan,” no matter how many times they watch sex and the city, eat fake chinese food, and collect Eiffel Tower statutes.
Regarding racism in the South. This is just my own personal observation and I’m in no way “married” the notions I’m about to expound but…at least in regards to white/black relationships I’ve found that:
Northeners always speak the right way and there is very little overt racism here, but whites and blacks rarely ever become good friends or intermingle much on a personal level. They live seperate lives. In the south however, whites and blacks seem much more familiar and comfortable with each other, even though there is a distinct increase in overt racism.
Strange.
sa,
well what do you mean by “the south,” my friend? downtown atlanta or birmingham? the research triangle of north carolina? hillbilly northern alabama, or creole mobile? is new orleans part of the south to you? what about nashville? and since when can you generalize from statewise averages in a country where there is so much inequality and demographic difference county to county?
not sure what you mean by class here. bigotry and nativism come in all social segments, only the express themselves a little different sometimes.
how about cassandra wilson, just off the top of my head – proud native of jackson, mississippi?
well there sure is plenty of vietnamese food all along the gulf coast. nigerians in houston. every kind of african and latin american in the atlanta region. the food industry in birmingham was built by greeks. mississippi is famous for tamales. chinese immigrants landed all over the region. meanwhile, charleston and new orleans have 500 years of worldly history, port centers with creole cultures that have flourished to this day.
oh no you didn’t! the ku klux klan has deep historic roots in indiana and was once very powerful in the northeast. cities like boston, detroit or chicago are as segregated as any southern city, usually more. racist violence has a rich and varied history across the united states. you know that.
uh, didn’t the entire country go for bush in 2004? right now, per the new york times a few days ago, the three states where bush is still above 50% approval are: utah, idaho, wyoming. which of these is part of the south? have a look at the red county/blue county maps from the 2004 election. you will see that whole swathes of the south went for kerry. a whole belt right across the middle of alabama – blue. the entire western fringe of mississippi – blue. and so forth.
you don’t say.
you’re dripping with contempt there… watch out, you’re going to need a bib. besides, whatchoo know about developed nations?
nobody said that MOST southerners or MOST americans or MOST humans of any category are cosmopolitan. what i did say is that the south is growing more cosmpolitan, in part thanks to the social and cultural input of people from world diasporas. feel free to ignore the party, there’ll be more gumbo and bourbon for the rest of us.
I’d say that a good kentucky bourbon is a much more sophisticated and subtle drink than a Scottish single malt…but then I’d be Threadjacking.
nah-uh, you wouldn’t. tennessee sour mash ain’t bad either. and not that jack daniels stuff. you can get better… and less expensive.
but despite our political differences i’d join you over an old weller 107 anytime!
fair enough, good points
This happens so rarely that I thought it needed to be highlighted. We should defintiely celebrate with some old weller 107.