The grotesque and sickening attack on a female Tanzanian student in Bengaluru has once again shown us for the bigots and racists we are. Bosco Kaweesi, legal adviser of the All African Students’ Union, mentioned that the victim is under “tremendous pressure” and “doesn’t know who to trust”. It’s really that line (“Doesn’t know who to trust...”), we need to focus on. Why? Because it pretty much says it all. If possible, switch the stranger who was brutally attacked with your own family member... I thought of one of my daughters.
I imagined her studying in a foreign country. And the same ghastly incident happening to her. Yes, of course, our children too face racial attacks. And they also confront discrimination at various levels while studying overseas. They have been beaten up, even murdered on campuses and streets across the world. From Australia to America, our kids have been forced to endure the worst sort of humiliation. Some for wearing turbans, others for choosing headscarves, still others for not being White. And that has been their biggest “crime” — not being White! Each time we’ve heard of such an attack, we have reacted with hurt and pain.
And our embassies have issued the standard statements to their counterparts in the host countries. Despite that, our students continue to flock overseas. The reason is easy to understand: they want a superior level of education. And they believe they can get it in colleges abroad. Never mind the killer costs involved. Never mind that our own educational institutions are world class. Same story in Africa. Which is why we should better understand the horror of what the Tanzanian woman went through, and show solidarity... display basic decency.... empathise... not shun.
Every anxious parent dreams of better prospects for the children. And a life that promises more prosperity than the one they themselves have experienced. So it is for all the African students who apply to universities in India. What they are not warned about when African parents send their children here is how nauseatingly colour-conscious India is and has always been.
Our national obsession with “fair skin” doesn’t end with our own. It literally colours every aspect of global social interactions. I have witnessed airline passengers requesting for a change of seats if the person next to them is “African”! Ignorant, insensitive and crude comments are loudly passed about “Kallus”. One “Kallu” is the same as any other dark skinned person. It is shameful... but no attempt has ever been made to change our disgusting attitude.
“Fair is beautiful” and “Black is evil”... this is what average Indians think. It is a deeply ingrained prejudice, reinforced by elders since childhood. It starts with mythology — all demons have black faces. The devil is projected as a dark individual. Inevitably victims such as the Tanzanian, student, suffer the brunt of mob attacks. That this incident took place in Bengaluru, a city that calls itself “young” and likes to believe it represents the Silicon Valley of India, makes a spate of similar racist attacks on foreign students, that much more condemnable. The timing couldn’t have been worse, either!
After the success of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s India-Africa Forum Summit 2015, India was expected to further consolidate ties with leaders representing African nations. In March 2015, four African nationals were attacked in Bengaluru with locals accusing them of “creating a nuisance”.
Since no real action was taken against perpetrators back then, it must have encouraged this week’s mob from going ahead and attacking the hapless woman. What’s worse is that she was pushed out of a bus in which she sought refuge, hoping to escape the fury of the louts who had stripped and beaten her up earlier. Compound that with the indifference of the local police who had the cheek to ask her, “Why do you need a lawyer?” and you have a highly combustible situation on your hands. So far, official response to the attack has been shockingly indifferent.
This is not an isolated incident. It’s happening in cities across India which attract African students. In Mumbai, cops think twice before intervening in brawls involving Africans. Every such person is called “Nigerian” and assumed to be a drug dealer. Instead of such arbitrary and often unfair assumptions, why not insist on better procedures, greater scrutiny before issuing visas? Five people have been arrested in Bengaluru following widespread protests across India. This may escalate into a serious diplomatic incident if it isn’t immediately dealt with, adopting maturity and tact at the highest level.
But before we swing into action against those five brutes, let us ask ourselves how we can handle our own racism. Why not consider regulating matrimonial ads that specifically state a preference for “fair” brides and grooms? Why not ban fairness creams altogether? It’s not difficult. For years we ignored the dangers of gutka consumption. Today, with better awareness, there is a widespread move against paan masalas.
We have made smoking in public places a real no-no. It has taken time and effort. But for the most part, these campaigns have worked. So will the movement against discrimination based on the lightness of skin. It’s the thickness of skin that counts, not lightness! Once that key message percolates into our heads and hearts, perhaps the next wave of students from Tanzania, Congo, Burundi and any other African state, will come to our shores and go back armed with more than just a college degree. Hopefully, India will also offer a warm embrace along with a good education.
