Federal Bureau of Investigation

During the United States' 2024 presidential race, prejudice and racism against Indians and Indian-Americans wasn't hard to find.

MAGA influencer Laura Loomer's comments attacking Democratic nominee Kamala Harris' mother, a native of India, were so offensive that even far-right Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Georgia) called her out. And after Donald Trump chose now-Vice President JD Vance as his nominee, white nationalist Nick Fuentes attacked Vance for being married to an Indian-American woman, Usha Vance.

Before businessman Vivek Ramaswamy dropped out of the 2024 GOP presidential primary and endorsed Trump, some Christian nationalists argued against nominating him because he's a Hindu.

In a late October article, Salon's Sophia Tesfaye cites Ramaswamy and FBI Director Kash Patel as two examples of "top MAGA foot soldiers" who are getting a brutal dose of reality thanks to far-right racism against Indians and Indian-Americans.

"On Monday, (October 20)," Tesfaye explains, "FBI Director Kash Patel posted a simple message on X to mark Diwali. The first Indian-American to lead the FBI, Patel is a practicing Hindu who took his oath of office earlier this year with his hand resting on the Bhagavad Gita. After sharing the holiday's message of hope, light and goodness, the New York-born Patel faced a wave of online hate, including calls for him to 'go back to India.' Conservative podcaster Steven Crowder shared Patel's message with 'Could we not?'"

Tesfaye continues, "Right-wing pastor and podcaster Joel Webbon's reply was more blunt: 'Go back home and worship your sand demons. Get out of my country.' Another MAGA supporter asked why Patel was 'betraying Charlie Kirk.'"

The Salon journalist notes that the Trump White House was "swarmed by anti-Indian prejudice" for hosting a Diwali event scheduled for November.

"MAGA-aligned Vivek Ramaswamy, the Republican candidate for governor in Ohio, faced similar attacks from the right," Tesfaye observes. "On Monday, disparaging comments targeting Ramaswamy resurfaced from Paul Ingrassia, Trump's controversial nominee to lead the White House Office of the Special Counsel, who said in January 2024, 'Never trust a chinaman or Indian. NEVER.' After Ingrassia's comments were revealed, at least four Republican senators, including Senate Majority Leader John Thune of South Dakota, yanked their support for the nominee, whose confirmation hearing was scheduled for Thursday. Ingrassia withdrew his nomination late Tuesday."

Tesfaye adds, "Ingrassia's messages were part of thousands of leaked texts from over 350 Young Republican operatives in a Telegram group chat that was exposed by Politico, revealing a culture steeped in racist, antisemitic and misogynistic language."

Tesfaye emphasizes that those Young Republicans on Telegram "weren't anonymous trolls," but rather, "held official roles in campaigns, government offices and influential conservative organizations."

"Republicans like to pretend that so-called woke liberals are the real racists," Tesfaye notes, "but this rhetoric and behavior undermines that notion…. For Indian-Americans in the MAGA movement, even their conservative identity will not shield them."

Sophia Tesfaye's full article for Salon is available at this link.