Cheers for Harry

Yesterday’s NYTimes featured a profile of Harvinder Anand, the new mayor of Laurel Hollow (a village on Long Island). Anand is the latest member of what the Times describes as “a small but recently growing number of Indian-American officeholders [that] has been getting elected in communities across the nation where they are the tiniest of minorities.”

Harvinder Anand, the new mayor of this Long Island village of multimillion-dollar homes, private beaches and yachtsmen, is, like many other residents, a successful business executive, a boater and a connoisseur of world travel. His Sikh turban and beard drew double takes when he moved to the community about 10 years ago, but it does not get many anymore. At least not among the locals…

Nonetheless, Mr. Anand’s way of standing out in the crowd of Bermuda-shorts-and-loafer-wearing people who elected him in June — he ran unopposed — attracted television crews from American and Indian networks to his inauguration on July 2… Link]

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p>Other examples of Indian-American officeholders mentioned in the article include a host of people we have covered in past posts on SM: Upendra J. Chivukula, Jay Goyal, Nikki Randhawa Haley, and Kumar P. Barve. All of them (comprised of both Reps and Dems) actually called to congratulate Anand. How is that for identity politics?

Some are Democrats and some Republicans, but they all share a high level of education and a crossover election appeal. It is a testament, perhaps, to the fact that, compared with other immigrant groups, Indians tend to speak English when they arrive and are ready to assume a place in the middle class. [Link]

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p>And of course there is also the Governor Elect (for all practical purposes) of Louisiana (he didn’t call Anand):

United States Representative Bobby Jindal, Republican of Louisiana, a second-generation Indian-American who was elected from a district whose population is 1.5 percent Asian, narrowly lost his bid for governor in 2003 and recently began a campaign for this year’s election for governor — in a state where Indian-Americans account for about 1 percent of the population. [Link]

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p>Part of the reason that Indian American candidates do so well (politically) outside of ethnic enclaves is that many never embed themselves in one in the first place. This is in contrast to other Asians:

In contrast, Chinese, Japanese and Korean immigrants have largely settled in cities on the East and West Coasts and in Hawaii, which is mostly where they have been elected to public office. [Link]

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p>It seems like Anand, like many other recent candidates, is adopting the Bloomberg/Schwarzenegger political philosophy:

“At the end of the day, I am a businessman,” said Mr. Anand, who ran without party affiliation in the village election but calls himself a Reagan Republican. “I believe in efficiency and cost-effectiveness…” [Link]

You can bet that there will be more Indian Americans running in 2008 and that we shall cover them all.

234 thoughts on “Cheers for Harry

  1. Part of the reason that Indian American candidates do so well (politically) outside of ethnic enclaves is that many never embed themselves in one in the first place. This is in contrast to other Asians:

    1) indian americans came after 1965 when gov. segregation was banned. though the west coast didn’t have segregation like the south, there were anti-miscegenation laws which gave you the general idea of why china and japantowns grew up. for the chinese the ghetto was a protective wall against violence directed at them.

    2) indian americans are more ethnically diverse than the early chinese and japanese were. the chinese were mostly cantonese. the japanese were obviousl japanese. so group mobilization is a higher hurdle when 1st gen communities aren’t united by a common non-english language.

    3) i would be curious as to seeing lower-48 residential segregation patterns. seems brownz do concentrate in particular areas, just like japanese and chinese (east and west coast + large midwestern cities). the fact that brownz started out such a highly educated professional community might have resulted in immediate residential dispersion and acculturation with white america in terms of being “the only brown in the room.”

  2. What is exactly the difference between a moderate Democrat and a moderate Republican? Also why do fence straddlers like Bloomberg and Arnold choose to run as Republicans rather than as Democrats?

  3. i can only hazard a guess that part of it must be about money : when it comes down to fiscal policies, perhaps this is what makes it easier, or more sensible, to go along with the party that wants to tax less.

  4. This guy has my vote only because he described himself as ‘a Reagan Republican’ This is who I am. As much as admire the Sikhs I would not care much if he called himself Democrat.

  5. Also why do fence straddlers like Bloomberg and Arnold choose to run as Republicans rather than as Democrats?

    bloomberg isn’t a fence saddler, his history is as a moderately liberal democrat. he switched to the repubs because he wouldn’t have to deal with a primary fight (which he might have lost). arnold is a more traditionally moderate republican, and his focus has generally been upon fiscal conservatism. but again, there’s no way he would have won the democratic primary as a right-wing democrat (he is probably no more conservative than many southern dems, and in fact more liberal on social issues) in california.

  6. This is so exciting! Isn’t Harry the first turban-wearing Sikh in office? (I could be wrong)

    I don’t know, Abhi. While Laurel Hollow is not uber-desi, I do think it helps that it’s located near an area with such a huge number of desis. I wonder if his election is due, in part, to the fact that maybe folks do not feel threatened by an ethnic voting bloc in Laurel Hollow? [I’m just thinking “aloud,” this is definitely not based on any hard data]

  7. Harry is such a cliched Americanization of his name. Why not HARVEY, if he must bastardize his name?

  8. who ran without party affiliation in the village election but calls himself a Reagan Republican. “I believe in efficiency and cost-effectiveness…�

    I remember the 80s. the age of the 4000 dollar or whatever toilet seats sold to the department of defense. REpublicans like to spend money and waste it too. Just in their preferred areas. Republicans like subsidies too. Just in their industries.

  9. Harry is such a cliched Americanization of his name. Why not HARVEY, if he must bastardize his name?

    Why not “Hairy?” 🙂

  10. When I first moved to Fargo as part of my temperory work arrangement. The first q most people politely asked ofcourse was “So, how do you like Fargo?”. TO which I sadly replied “I miss brown on the streets”. Most sympathized, one surprisingly responded “well what did you expect in small-town America?!”. Ofcourse, I agreed (not quite so readily though:).

    With growing desis here (AND in office), in another decade – I bloody well expect to a desi-tipping-tractors in small town America!

  11. who ran without party affiliation in the village election but calls himself a Reagan Republican

    hmmm…. maybe NOW, after he’s passed the “Reagan Republican” litmus test, he’ll get a call from TMRWDITUS. 😉

  12. Yaay for more pols of all races. I’m happy to see that desis are kinda going to both parties. Although I think that for a few more years, there will be more Republicans than Dems. Not because desis don’t want to be dems, but dems don’t want desis. You know what will be really sweet? Desis in parties other than these two. Like the green party, libertarians, reform party, ***king LaRouche’s party, everything.

  13. Democrats fiscal policy just doesn’t work. Its the fiscal conservatives, and socially liberal who are the so called ‘moderates’ in each party. Party affiliation depends on where they would get through in the primaries. You will hardly see a non religious person who is fiscal liberal and socially conservative…and that segment of ‘moderates’ is really small.

  14. Posterity, I did not dislike Democrats untill the the the advent of Jimmy Carter, since then it has gptten it has gotten worse because al the pro American Democrats inthe House of Representatives have retired one even campainged for Pres. Bush these were the ‘Cold War arriors and patriots. Today’s Democ-Rats are traitors and deeply anti-American.

  15. Part of the reason that Indian American candidates do so well (politically) outside of ethnic enclaves is that many never embed themselves in one in the first place. This is in contrast to other Asians

    So, disembedded (deracialized?) Indian Americans are being celebrated by Indian American politicians and on South Asian (American) blogs…

  16. With growing desis here (AND in office), in another decade – I bloody well expect to a desi-tipping-tractors in small town America!

    Not sure I understand what you mean…..as an aside desi tractors (i.e. Mahindra) are already in small town America, now we just need desis from the kraamam/pind to ride them

  17. Part of the reason that Indian American candidates do so well (politically) outside of ethnic enclaves is that many never embed themselves in one in the first place. This is in contrast to other Asians

    So, disembedded (deracialized?) Indian Americans are being celebrated by Indian American politicians and on South Asian (American) blogs…

    ScarletGuju, just because a family has the means to move into the suburbs or outside doesn’t mean the South Asian or rather the Indian-American population is “deracialized”.

    My understanding of the reason why Indian-Americans do not have a Chinatown or so, is the fact that since they entered the country in droves primarily as professionals, they did not need to set up shop in an ethnic enclave and they had the money to pick and choose where would be the best place to raise a family as well as building temples, gurudwaras, mosques, and other places of worship.

    This is just an opinion, but I think Indian-Americans have held on to their culture more so than other Asians (and no this isn’t based on scientific study so if someone knows of some research on this that contradicts me that is fine). now this may be b/c of so many factors, but being able to afford to live in a town where the best schools are and where it is safe does not obviously make Indian-Ams deracialized.

  18. Posterity, I did not dislike Democrats untill the the the advent of Jimmy Carter, since then it has gptten it has gotten worse because al the pro American Democrats inthe House of Representatives have retired one even campainged for Pres. Bush these were the ‘Cold War arriors and patriots. Today’s Democ-Rats are traitors and deeply anti-American.

    So Jimmy Carter is more anti American than the likes of Cheney???? Can you honestly say there has been a Democratic VP worse than Cheney or Agnew in recent decades? Cheney earned blood money through Halliburton and he has done nothing while Halliburton was stealing money by overbilling the country and indirectly stealing money that could have been better spent on the troops. This is your Republican types. He hasnt donated anything meaningful to the troops. A lot of these Repub warmongers seem to have a trend of avoiding serving. Meanwhile the likes of McGovern who actually served with honor get tarred as wishy washy anti American types.

    The Dems are no angels. But it is hilarious when you paint one side as Anti American and the other side as pro American. Regardless of how one views Carter, he did try to improve America’s image. So even if you think he is a failure, you cannot seriously claim his intentions were anti Americans. Meanwhile someone like Kissinger put himself above the country when it came to policy making.

  19. Some part of me thinks that bobby jindal’s star should burn as brightly as barack obama’s.

  20. One reason that desis tend to go with Republicans is the conservative/family values flag that they wave. IMO. That’s also the reason why Muslims have voted for Republicans in the past, based on a documentary I saw. Though seems like Republicans are the ones who have more sex scandals than Democrats.

  21. He (Cheney) hasnt donated anything meaningful to the troops. A lot of these Repub warmongers seem to have a trend of avoiding serving.

    Yup. As PF said many moons ago:

    Forward he cried from the rear and the front rank died. And the general sat and the lines on the map moved from side to side.

  22. From what I heard, Bobby Jindal did nothing of any significance to help out during Katrina. Is that true? Not good for someone with the drive to become the next GOvernor of Louisiana.

  23. That’s also the reason why Muslims have voted for Republicans in the past, based on a documentary I saw.

    Amit, which documentary are you referring to?

  24. moreMirchi, the one by Salman Ahmad, the lead singer of Junoon, called It’s My Country Too. IIRC, he mentions in that film somewhere that Muslims in the US have in general voted for Reps. I don’t know if that’s backed by statistics or not.

  25. So, disembedded (deracialized?) Indian Americans are being celebrated by Indian American politicians and on South Asian (American) blogs…

    ScarletGuju, where should I live to avoid becoming a “coconut” ? Can I evade caucasification as a grad student at OSU ? I caught myself thumbing through L.L. Bean catalogue and tying my sweater around my shoulders. Yesterday I listened to Prairie Home Companion in my car for 30 minutes before a co-ethnic pulled alongside and shook his head in disgust. Can I be helped? What does Marx chaachaa say ?

  26. moreMirchi, the one by Salman Ahmad, the lead singer of Junoon, called It’s My Country Too. IIRC, he mentions in that film somewhere that Muslims in the US have in general voted for Reps. I don’t know if that’s backed by statistics or not.

    At least in 2000, major Muslim organizations like CAIR voted Repub, in large part due to the same socially conservative messages that appealed to Christian conservativesFrom this writeup

    In the 2000 presidential race, Muslim activists attempted to do just that. A coalition of Muslim leaders representing some of the nation’s most influential groups, including the Council on American Islamic Relations (CAIR) and the Muslim Public Affairs Committee (MPAC), worked to deliver a bloc vote to former Texas governor, George W. Bush……… Some Muslim leaders also found the Republican Party’s platform on domestic issues dealing with abortion and school vouchers appealing.
  27. … Muslims in the US have in general voted for Reps.

    interesting. while i know that there have been core Muslim populations in the US that voted Republican, my sense was that the “general” tendency was to vote Democrat. does anyone have statistics?

    also, i know this is SM is primarily a US site, but i do wish there was a Canadian counterpart somewhere, at least for this post and the way brown communities vote across the two countries. and also, up here we have lots of brown politicians. =)

  28. Harvinder Anand, the new mayor of this Long Island village of multimillion-dollar homes, private beaches and yachtsmen, is, like many other residents, a successful business executive, a boater and a connoisseur of world travel.

    But does he have the Long Island swagger?

    louiecypher #27, well said, my fellow Lemurian!

  29. Pravin, I agree with almost all of you what you said, except for:

    A lot of these Repub warmongers seem to have a trend of avoiding serving.

    This is a very poor reason to criticize their decision to go to war (which I completely disagree with). I do not at all think that a decision to go to war can only be made by an ex-soldier, but what it does require is an excellent understanding of geo-politics, history, military strategy, and political savvy. And these are all elements in which the current crop is lacking.

    (Sorry, I always tend to be harsher on the “more reasonable” side of an argument, because I expect better from “my team” – I know that sounds patronizing, but I don’t know a better way to put it 🙂

  30. The way I read that statement was that the Repubs are cowards (and not that they have no authority to declare a war) – they did their best to stay out of military service, but have no compunctions about sending others to war.

  31. The way I read that statement was that the Repubs are cowards (and not that they have no authority to declare a war) – they did their best to stay out of military service, but have no compunctions about sending others to war.

    Amit, yes, and I disagree with the ad hominem nature of that rebuttal.

  32. What is with the Indian – American this, Indian – American that? I thought this site was a South – Asian this and South Asian that champion?

  33. This guy has my vote only because he described himself as ‘a Reagan Republican’ This is who I am. As much as admire the Sikhs I would not care much if he called himself Democrat.

    How many people, I wonder, were poor or involved in the arts (visual, performing), and found the Reagan years to be some sort of utopian existence, “when the conservatism was pure and F^cked over both the rural/urban poor as well as the arts community(who were obviously pinko commie dole-grubbers, working on behalf of the USSR to instill some appreciation of life beyond watching the Cosby show and getting your vegetables via Ketchup.)”

    Rajesh,

    For most wealthy junk-bond investors and corp raiders, the 80s were a really good time–if you don’t believe me, watch American Psycho and see what kind of hijinks they would get up to–gold chains and Lamborghinis were plentiful and, thanks to Miami Vice, open-chested shirts and chest-hair were not as forbidden as they became in the 90s.

    But for people living in BumF^ck USA (any rural location, take your pick)and those who made their living by teaching anything arts-related, these were the leanest, meanest, most miserable times of their life. I know, because I was both of those things: rural and the child of a single parent who unfortunately made her living as dance teacher–the “Islamofacists” of that decad

  34. Bobby Jindal has done tireless work during Katrina for his constituency and has been praised for it. New Orleans is not his area. Dick Cheney made his decisions based on the same intelligence that Clinton got. Clinton said the same exact things about Iraq. It was faulty intelligence rather any machlivian plans to aid Halliburton that caused the ‘misadventure’ in Iraq. Saddam himself wanted others to believe that he had more than he had in order to deter Iran and other enemies.

  35. I wonder if its possible for a bearded turbaned brown guy to get voted into office in a red state…

  36. What is with the Indian – American this, Indian – American that? I thought this site was a South – Asian this and South Asian that champion?

    I referred only to Indian American b/c I was commenting on someone’s conclusion that since In-Ams don’t have ethnic enclaves like Chinatowns than they are “deracialized”. Louiecypher, that was such a great answer by the way.

    In order to respond to that I wanted to refer to the specific demographics of In-Ams, that are not shared by Bangledeshi-Ams, Srilankan-Ams, etc.

  37. deracialized

    anyone that had to hide from gettin beaten after 9-11 isnt “deracilized”

  38. A few points:

    1) some people seem to forget that beginning from the middle of his second term, Reagan was one of the most unpopular presidents in history (you can look up polls on this)

    2) it was also during the Reagan years that the United States became a net debtor (i.e. had persistent current account deficits; though one might legitimately argue about the exact contribution of his policies)

    3) “small government” Reagan also dramatically increased the size of the federal government (though not the “left hand” of the government, i.e. social services etc.; compare this to Carter, who was far more fiscally conservative)

    4)Let us not even go into his murderous policies in Central America (and other peerless foreign policy choices such as monetary support for the Apartheid regime, and South African mercenary forces, or frankly, death squads in other parts of Africa; again, there is not enough space to talk about Central America)

    However: 1) one might argue about the extent to which Reagan personally was responsible for the policies, since his knowledge about most things (esp. those mentioned above) was next to nothing (one might consider the role of the reactionaries around him that comprised his cabinet)

    Therefore this mindless mythologizing and Reagan hagiographies piss me off.

  39. Therefore this mindless mythologizing and Reagan hagiographies piss me off

    but…but…i read somewhere that reagen took off his shirt and single handedly arm wrestled the evil soviets to death…

  40. 2) it was also during the Reagan years that the United States became a net debtor (i.e. had persistent current account deficits; though one might legitimately argue about the exact contribution of his policies)

    you could argue that deficits have been a net benefit for the US.

    but…but…i read somewhere that reagen took off his shirt and single handedly arm wrestled the evil soviets to death…

    as per Colbert, he punched a whole in the Berlin Wall causing it to fall.

  41. Today’s Democ-Rats are traitors and deeply anti-American.

    And pray tell us what the heck is so darn American about the republicans today and not about the dems?

  42. Cheers to Harvinder!

    Part of the reason that Indian American candidates do so well (politically) outside of ethnic enclaves is that many never embed themselves in one in the first place. This is in contrast to other Asians:

    Apart from the reasons for this mentioned by Razib in comment #1, could fluency in English by desi immigrants be another factor?

    M. Nam

  43. And pray tell us what the heck is so darn American about the republicans today and not about the dems?

    but…bush told me so, so it must be true…bush is one os “us”. he wouldnt lie…

  44. So, disembedded (deracialized?) Indian Americans are being celebrated by Indian American politicians and on South Asian (American) blogs…

    One can be just as desi as when they arrived on these shores AND live amongst non-desis. I would argue that those who do this are better ambassadors for desidom, than those who find comfort in their own conclaves.

  45. it was also during the Reagan years that the United States became a net debtor

    Recently read a report that said that the net deficit reported is usually inflated because it does not take into account the fact that in the case of many US multinationals, the profits do indeed make their way back to the US and this is not reflected in deficit calculations.

  46. Today’s Democ-Rats are traitors and deeply anti-American.
    And pray tell us what the heck is so darn American about the republicans today and not about the dems?

    Ardy, please ignore such baseless rants.

  47. Part of the reason that Indian American candidates do so well (politically) outside of ethnic enclaves is that many never embed themselves in one in the first place. This is in contrast to other Asians:

    Except for maybe the Gujjus in Edison, NJ 🙂