Came across this article on Shillong Times. Racism – an introspection Editor, The feeling of alienation is not something we cherish. Whenever we leave our homes in search of a better life, many of us feel alienated. Of course, in time we make new friends and gradually we make the new city/country our home. But what should we do when we are treated as outsiders in places which we like to call home? There is then a cruel sense of alienation that is hard to describe. Many non-indigenous people who have lived in the North East for generations can understand this feeling of alienation. When Pynshngain L Lyngdoh touched about the issue of reverse racism (ST February 20, 2014) it touched a chord deep down many hearts. After what happened to Nido Tania in New Delhi, it is only natural for everybody in the North East, including the non-indigenous people, to come together and cry foul. But who cries foul when the same kind of treatment is meted out to the non-indigenous people here? As residents of Shillong, we don’t have to go too far back in our memory to get an example of such kind of murderous incidents. India’s dynamics makes it compulsory for different ethnicities to live together. There is no way, practically, where we can live separately. Then why do we continue to harp on our cultural identity and the threats over it? Isn’t it time to introspect and see whether we have gone wrong in respecting our cultures and preserving our identities. As the great American war hero Cesar Chavez quoted, “Preservation of one’s own culture doesn’t require contempt or disrespect for other cultures”. Just as so-called ‘mainland Indians’ need to respect people of the North East, the indigenous communities here should return the same favour. Yours etc., Reetasri Bhattacharjee Shillong – 6 Read more at theshillongtimes/2014/02/21/wake-up-cleve-colony/#tjldv0LULbZlwAwm.99
Posted on: Mon, 24 Feb 2014 11:10:34 +0000