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News > U.S.

'Birds of a Feather': Progressives Slam Trump, 'Howdy Modi' Meeting in Texas

  • The U.S. President Donald Trump will join an Indian-American event with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

    The U.S. President Donald Trump will join an Indian-American event with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi. | Photo: Reuters

Published 17 September 2019
Opinion

"Thousands of Indian Americans who are minorities in this country will attend an event celebrating two supremacists," said professor Ayesha Ray.

Progressives slammed the United States President Donlad trump’s decision to join Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in a bipartisan event in Houston on Sept. 22. 

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Bernie Sanders Condemns India's Action in Occupied Kashmir

"I don't know what's more embarasssing—that Modi will appear beside Trump or that Trump will appear beside Modi," tweeted Rutgers professor Audrey Truschke. "Both countries have my condolences." 

The “Howdy, Modi!” event is sponsored by the Texas Indian Forum and will be held at the NRG Stadium. Around 50,000 people are expected to attend the event. 

Texas Republican Senator Ted Cruz, Texas Democratic Representative Sheila Jackson-Lee and Al Green, and others are expected to attend this event. 

The far-right Indian Prime Minister’s influence in the U.S. goes beyond people who are attending the event. Joe Biden, one of the 2020 Democratic candidates, hired a Modi supporter as his campaign's director of outreach to the Asian-American Pacific Islander community.

"As an Indian-American, who's seeing the humanitarian crisis imposed on Kashmir by the Modi government—it is truly troubling to see Biden elevating someone who is in support of this now bordering on fascist regime in a leadership position," said the Council for American Islamic relations Arizona's executive director Imran Siddiqi. 

Last month, Modi took away Indian occupied Kashmir’s special status and put the whole valley under lockdown which has surpassed 40 days. Indian forces arrested more than 4,000 Kashmiris during this time. At the same time, Modi’s government rendered 1.9 million people from the northeastern state of Assam, stateless, calling them “illegal aliens.”

 "When they cheer Modi, they cheer fascism," said human rights lawyer Arjun Sethi. "When they stand by his side, they whitewash his atrocities in Kashmir and Assam. These officials should be shamed and called out."

"Thousands of Indian Americans who are minorities in this country will attend an event celebrating two supremacists," said professor Ayesha Ray.

Other critics compared Modi and Trump and showed how similar their anti-people politics is. 

"Birds of a feather, fascist together," said Al Jazeera host Sana Saeed.

Writer Wajahat Ali pointed out Modi’s Hindu nationalism and how he was banned from entering the U.S. for silent encouragement to the genocide of Muslims in Eastern state of Gujarat in 2002 when he was the chief minister of Gujarat. 

"Modi is a Hindu Nationalist who was denied entry to the U.S. for years because he was responsible for failing to stop the massacre of Muslims in India when he was minister of Gujrat," said Ali. "Trump loves the best people."​​​​​​​

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