Since we’re on the topic of H1B visas today and the backlash in certain quarters, which often borders on the xenophobic, I present thee with this article which discusses something called “the macaca effect”, with a different connotation.

The writer of this article claims it’s a common term in the IT industry (quoting her):

And the ‘macaca effect’ is pejorative used by people in high tech to refer to East Indians driving down the wages of American and British workers. In many fields (computer programming, engineering, medicine, nursing, accounting, etc.) companies are faking labor shortages to acquire an H1B visa and hire East Indians, with the net effect of driving down the wages of American and British employees. Thus, one hears disgruntled employees talking about the ‘macaca effect.’

After quoting a couple of protectionists, she ends by referencing Jean Raspail and the Camp of the Saints. I found this quote she used in her article (even though she claims to quote someone else), extremely degrading:

Indians are best equipped to infiltrate and bring down Western countries - and they can do it with an obsequious smile.

Has anyone ever heard of “macaca effect” being used to reference desi programmers? Please feel free to share your thoughts and opinions on this article.

Attempts by our bloggers to contact the author of this article to get her side of the story (if any) have proved futile at the time of publishing this post.

The Macaca Effect - Über Desi

Mickey hates turbans?
img: via Blog Smith Media

The details of the suit indicate that Channa - an accomplished trumpet player- was told that he did not have the “Disney look” had. Bizarrely, Channa who had worked in Disney in 2006 actually had participated in the parade ( for the uninitiated- this is a twice daily feature and most anticipated by all the kiddies and their parents!). At the parade, his turban was hidden by the large soldier hat that he wore. Initially,Disney requested Channa to wear a red turban at work - in keeping with the general dress code guidelines for park employees. Fair enough. In 2006,however, Channa when reapplying for seasonal work was told that he did not meet the requirements for the “Disney look” ( What look is that? Anthropomorphic?)

If the suit is found to have merit, Disney certainly has some explaining to do. For a global corporation that has no qualms about marketing characters to impressionable kids around the world, the idea that there is a certain “look” that is acceptable is ridiculous! For the approximately two of our US based readers who have *NOT* visited Disneyland theme parks - on any day , the parks are teeming with people of all ages, shapes, sizes, nationalities.There is no logic that dictates that all Disney employees need to look a certain way. In fact, Disney prides itself on having employees from all over the world and from what I remember, the park employees wear badges with their names and country of origin displayed!

The actions of Disney may have been the product of a misguided or xenophobic hiring manager. Watch this space as we learn more and bring it to you!

Mouse ears,yes.Turbans,no! - Über Desi

Letter protesting the withdrawal of an ad because of an ethnic scarf
I sent mine, did you?
img: via Über Desi @ Flickr.com
Enough is enough. This kind of fear mongering has gone on for too long and went too far this time. By pulling the Rachel Ray ad, not only did Dunkin Donuts kowtow to unreasonable demands but also perpetuated the stereotype that anyone wearing a certain kind of clothing is a jihadist or terrorist. This is perhaps only symbolic but it could also signify the beginning of a slippery slope where further unreasonable demands (Against turbans, for instance) could be made under the guise of faux-patriotism.

Instead of getting mad at the situation and simply venting our frustrations by blogging about it, we propose a little online Gandhigiri. Print the following protest letter, paste a stamp, write your address, sign it and post it. [MS Word 97-03] [PDF Version]

Also forward this letter to your friends, families and co-workers. Perhaps sending dozens of nicely worded requests to Dunkin’ Donuts’ Customer Care department should help in getting the point across.

Share your thoughts in the comments space below and, of course, print, sign and send the protest letter to Dunkin’ Donuts.

Dear Dunkin’ Donuts,
I’m extremely disappointed in your decision to withdraw the above ad because a few people felt it related to jihadists. By withdrawing this ad, you’ve not only folded to demands of an unreasonable nature but also unwittingly perpetuated this myth that people wearing certain traditional clothing are similar to jihadists and terrorists.
People belonging to various cultures across the country consume your products daily and, frankly, your decision to withdraw this innocuous web ad shows a lack of understanding and respect to these customers. I request that you do the right thing and put this ad back in circulation or make an appropriate gesture of conciliation to customers from all cultures.
Signed,
A disappointed customer

FAQ
Q. It’s Dunkin Donuts’ money and ad to do as they please.
A. And as Dunkin’ Donuts customers its our right to voice our displeasure.

Q. Michelle Malkin has the right to say what she wants.
A. Newsflash, so do we.

Q. Will this work?
A. What was that Thomas Jefferson quote on death and taxes? Nothing is guaranteed. This may work or fail miserably. Consider the other option, doing nothing about it. That will definitely not work.

Q. Why not boycott Dunkin Donuts?
A. Who said that was not an option?

Q. I have a better idea….
A. Got a better idea? Share it in the comments space below.

Q. I don’t have a Dunkin Donuts shop in my area. Why should I protest?
A. Since Dunkin Donuts sells their stuff online, anyone anywhere is a potential customer.

Q. How much money will all this cost me?
A. The price of a postage stamp.

Dear Dunkin’ Donuts - Über Desi

Cheerleaders face racial abuse
img: via Courier Mail Australia

Coming on the heels of the Shilpa Shetty-Big Brother fiasco [1,2,3,4], the British media has picked up the story and (rightfully) ran with it.

Truly disgraceful, if this transpired as reported in the SUN story. Knowing our culture, the way people think and the overall societal affinity towards fairer skinned people, it is hard to imagine some idiot might not have acted in such a despicable manner. However, the two cheerleaders have also said that overall, the crowd was very receptive to them. I can see why the crowd were so receptive. I concur.

Wizcraft International Entertainment has denied any knowledge of the incident. In case the name, Wizcraft, sounded familiar, they’re the same event organizers who brought Michael Jackson and the Miss World contest to India in the 90s.

Black IPL cheerleaders claim racial abuse - Über Desi

Then Harbhajan Singh was suspended for allegedly calling Andrew Symonds a “monkey”. While if true, Harbhajan deserves punishment the ban, what is mind boggling is that in a “he said she said” case the ICC has predictably decided to side with the Australian’s version of the story without any concrete evidence. [link]

Effigy stocks up in price after India gets royally screwed by the ICC
img: via TOI

This after decades of instances of visiting teams from the subcontinent being subjected to racial abuse from the Australian players with zero consequences. Remember when Sri Lanka was subjected to the most degrading treatment at the hand of the Aussies? Even after being presented with evidence of such abuse no action was taken by the ICC against the Aussies. Now with zero evidence against Harbhajan the ICC decided to hand him, get this, a 3 match ban! Let’s hear it again, multiple players on Australian team heap racial abuses on players from subcontinent, go scot free even after evidence is presented to match refree. One player from subcontinent is handed a 15-day ban with zero evidence of racial abuse on the word of a player from the opposing team. Quick, Stevie Wonder, what’s wrong with this story?

I applaud the Indian team management for finally growing a pair and not putting up with any more of this abuse from the ICC and the Australians. India should go ahead and cancel this tour. For all practical purposes and in spirit, it’s over anyway bar the shouting. The BCCI certainly has the monetary prowess to deal with the fallout. Teams from the subcontinent should stop touring Australia until such a time a brown player is not subject to discriminatory treatment, both on and off the field.

Update: The tour is on per the BCCI inspite of the controversy [link]. Indo-phobe umpire Steve Bucknor has been removed from the officiating crew [link] and Australian Brad Hogg has been charged for verbally abusing Indian players [link]. Bhajji will play and a decision on his case is pending with the BCCI.

India suspends Australia cricket tour (Update: Reversal) - Über Desi

Mottai* Malaysian Macacas
img: via TOI Online

The Malaysian government and law enforcement has employed tear gas and water cannons, slapped their leaders with murder charges which magically disappeared and tried linking them to terrorist groups.

In the face of overwhelming systematic oppression, all these Malaysian desis have done is peacefully protest on the streets holding pictures of Gandhi. Perhaps their counterparts (protesters) in India can pick up some pointers from these folks.

In the most recent edition of this saga, sixteen men (pictured left) shaved their heads in protest and prayed for the release of their leaders who have been held indefinitely without trial under the draconian Internal Securities Act of Malaysia. [link]

As long as the protests stay peaceful, this should get very interesting.

* Mottai = “bald” in Tamil

The Bald and the Desi-ful - Über Desi

Malaysia has now played that card well and India has backed off. [link]
Could these charges be true? Certainly within the realm of possiblity. The timing and accusations seems too convenient though.

Thoughts? Opinion?

Malaysia accuses agitating Indians with LTTE links - Über Desi

The first place to look at was youtube and this is what I found.

Propagating ever known stereotype, this show rubs me the wrong way. Well that was until I figured that I was not alone. [ 1,2,3]

Ooh BTW Raja Musharaff, the name of one of the characters, is not really Islamic or Pakistani for that matter. And that music does not help.

So how does everyone else feel about this stupid show?

[update]

The problem with writing about stories without completly knowing all the details is not a good thing to do. And it has come back to bite me, you know where.

Aliens was very different from what I expected. I started thinking that the joke was on us, but as the show progressed, it became clear. The joke was on them.

I did not get the reason why Raja was wearing the ’showler kameez’ to school, they answered it. I did not like the ‘apu get me my slushie’, then again I guess that is what South Asian kids go through here. And did not like the music when Raja was praying, but in the show it did not seem so blatantly racist and scary as it did in the trailer. DId they edit the music?

All in all it was better than what I expected. It still falls below my standards for a smart and funny comedy, but it was way better than the initial impression I got from watching the trailer.

Sorry for the late update, this is from my phone and I am some 25000 feet up over middle america. I will update this post with what other bloggers think as soon as I find a computer. Until then stick around UD where we do make mistakes, but we also are not ashamed to admit that we are wrong.

‘Aliens in America’ walking on very thin ice. [updated] - Über Desi

But apparently this is not the case in Albuquerque, New Mexico.

The first time Ankur Tangirala was attacked, he shook his head, called his attacker a “psycho” and walked away.

The second time, he was kicked in the stomach and knocked to the ground.

A pattern of ongoing assaults near the University of New Mexico has disrupted the community of more than 100 East Indian students.

Fifteen students have come forward to describe similar attacks in the past few months. Five have filed police reports, either with UNM police or the Albuquerque Police Department, said Bhavana Upadhyaya, president of the India Student Association

What is surprising is that the attackers seem to target Indian students and at some point every attacker utters ‘Namaste’.

Danny Hernandez, president of the University Heights Neighborhood Association, says the frequency of the attacks appears to be escalating, with one assault per week for over the last month.

“It makes us wonder if these attacks are going to escalate to the point where the man has a weapon,” Hernandez said.

In a recent assault, Tangirala said, the victim reported that his attacker kicked him to the ground and then pulled a screwdriver out and threatened him with it.

“I don’t want to be sensationalist, but imagine if he gets a gun,” Tangirala said. “Can you say that there is no risk that he won’t shoot?”

I agree with Tangirala, what if the suspect was armed.

Do our readers have examples of such bizarre behavior in college/ college towns?

[update]

Thankfully, a suspect was in custody.

Last week the University police took into custody 34-year-old Turan Johnson who is suspected of assaulting several Desi male students. Johnson has a history of bizarre behavior and was placed at the UNM Mental Health Center on a 72-hour hold.

Later, he said in court that he is a student at an Indian school of medicine in Albuquerque. Johnson made several odd claims to the judge, including “I have 12 Chinese girlfriends.” Johnson was given a mental evaluation which helped police decide to charge him with a hate crime.

The key here, if something untoward happens, REPORT it to the authorities. Not everyone is crazy and this country is filled with a lot of people who are willing to help you.

India students fear attacks could be racially motivated. [updated] - Über Desi

A week ago, when I was talking to a close friend, I described California as one of the more multicultural places in the West. My theory was that people from all over the world moved there a long time ago and it really was one of the more homogeneous melting pots.

Today I am made to eat my words.

Prather said the man was walking on the beach with his fiancée and her cousin, who also are of East Indian heritage, when the Silvas shouted racial slurs at the women. When confronted by the man, Prather said, the Silvas continued shouting slurs. Prather said his client was attacked as he dialed 911.

People who keep up with South Asian news will remember the recent case of Satender Singh and the fact that the suspects fled the country.

Singh, who was picnicking July 1 with six friends of Fijian and Indian descent at a picnic area near Lake Natoma, was fatally injured in an assault during what witnesses told the Sacramento Bee was an ugly verbal attack laced with racist and homophobic slurs…

The DA is not taking this case lightly, not after what happened to Satender.

The El Dorado County District Attorney’s Office also declined to release the name of the victims.

O’Hara said Joseph Silva is charged with felony assault with force likely to produce great bodily injury and a “special allegation” that he did indeed inflict great bodily injury on the victim. He also is charged with misdemeanor battery. Both Silvas also are charged with two counts of violation of civil rights, which is a misdemeanor, O’Hara said.

Like Markus pointed out, is the lack of jobs and education the main problem?

Another Californian assault on Indians - Über Desi