Daijiworld Media Network – Washington
Washington, Jul 2: Prominent Republican leader and former US presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy has strongly criticised what he described as the ‘race-obsessed fringe of the right’ for targeting Indian-origin individuals in American politics, including New York mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani and Usha Vance, wife of US vice president JD Vance.
“It’s a shame to watch the race-obsessed fringe of the right try to outdo the race-obsessed woke left,” Ramaswamy posted on X, formerly Twitter, responding to recent attacks by far-right commentators.
The backlash began when white nationalist influencer Nick Fuentes criticised conservatives for singling out non-white public figures like Mamdani. In a post, Fuentes wrote, “When conservatives attack Zohran Mamdani for being a foreigner, I just want them to keep the same energy with Vivek Ramaswamy and Usha Vance. Let’s be consistent.”
The controversy was sparked by a viral video of Zohran Mamdani eating rice with his hands during an interview. The clip, captioned “Zohran says his worldview is inspired by the 3rd world while eating rice with his hands,” drew outrage from some conservative commentators. Among them, Texas Republican Congressman Brandon Gill declared on social media, “Civilised people in America don’t eat like this. If you refuse to adopt Western customs, go back to the Third World.”
Mamdani, the first Muslim Democrat nominee for New York mayor, was born in Uganda to renowned Indian-origin intellectuals Mahmood Mamdani and filmmaker Mira Nair. He is of Gujarati Muslim and Punjabi Hindu heritage and became a US citizen in 2018. He has frequently been a target of political attacks for his progressive views, most recently drawing fire from former President Donald Trump, who labelled him a “communist” and questioned his citizenship. Trump also threatened to arrest Mamdani if he interfered with immigration enforcement in New York.
Mamdani called Trump’s threats ‘an attack on democracy’ and vowed not to be intimidated into silence.
Ramaswamy, who was born in Cincinnati, Ohio to Tamil Brahmin parents from Kerala, has himself faced racism online. In May, his anniversary post for his wife Apoorva, who is also of Indian origin, was met with xenophobic abuse, with users telling the couple to “go back to India.”
Usha Chilukuri Vance, wife of vice president JD Vance, was born in California to Hindu parents from Andhra Pradesh. Her inclusion in the right-wing commentary as a supposed “outsider” has raised eyebrows within the Republican base, especially given her deep ties to American society and law.
Ramaswamy’s statement has brought attention to the rising tensions within the conservative movement, where identity politics and xenophobia are being used even against naturalised or American-born citizens of Indian descent, especially those who don’t align with hardline rhetoric.
The incident has once again highlighted the growing racial and cultural divides in American political discourse, with Indian-origin leaders finding themselves at the centre of both admiration and vilification in the national spotlight.