The Indian Descent Miss America Pageant 2014 Crowning Flocked with Racist Tweets

Who is an American? This is a question many may not be able to answer considering the successive waves of immigration that has seen the nation struggle to define which new immigrants are actually fit for the American society and who should really be called Americans. But for Nina Davuluri, the newly crowned Miss American 2014 may have to understand that although she is an American, there are some who feel she is not. This is not about Nina Davuluri or about American people but is about the perception some people in America have towards others. 



Nina Davuluri is actually American and every American should be proud of her and accord her the much-needed support. However, soon after Nina was crowned Miss America 2014 pageant title, there was a bombardment of racist tweets, which flocked the internet. Some tweets read that if you a Miss American, then you should be American! And others even asked- when will a white woman win Miss American?

                                                                           

     

These comments and questions might have raised redflag by trying to convey to the people of American that if you are an American of certain descent, then you may not be regarded as a real American. But let us face the fact here. When the sports athletes win gold and other medals in the Olympics or other world championship- who do they pride themselves of being? They are Americans although they may be of different descents.

Nina Davuluri is the first Miss America of Indian American origin. Some people might argue that she presents the virtues and culture of Indians more than the American culture and virtues. Does it really make sense to believe that Nina may have represented Indian virtues and not American?

Nani Davuluri, a 24-year-old celebrity from Syracuse won the 2014 beauty pageant where she competed on the platform dubbed "Celebrating Diversity through Cultural Competency". In the talent portion, Davuluri featured classical Indian dance that was fused with Bollywood moves, something that expressed Indian cultural feelings and expressions.

A similar racist feeling was seen in 2010 when Rima Fakih was crowned miss USA 2010. Fakih is Lebanese descent and people tried to quickly associate her with the Hezbollah military group. There was a feeling that Nina Davuluri is a Muslim but she isn’t! Some tweets even tried to link the timing for her pageant win with the Al Qaeda and the 9/11.

The tweets against Nina Davuluri might not have been directed to her but the heritage she is associated with. If you are an American of a particular descent, there are still some connections of your ancestral heritage. But an American whether of black, Indian, Italian, Cuba, or Lebanese descent upholds and represents the heritage and values of America.

Although in the past whiteness remained the test for Americanness, this perhaps has changed, and it is time Americans regardless of their descent should join hands together and uphold their cultural heritage. In the past, America has been struggling in defining who an American is for example, in 1917, Congress drew a line on the globe and declared “Asiatic Barred Zone” , the region from the Middle East to Southeast Asia, as one in which the United States would not accept immigrants from.

Today, these old racial criteria have vanished and America holds a “fit-for-all” immigration framework that encourages people from different spheres of life and regions to settle and live in American as citizens. With the Nina Davuluri racist tweets against her, this is an indication that the citizens of this country might have reached their lowest point and they have to accept the reality. Nina Davuluri is an American regardless of her descent and she upholds American values and virtues. She is a symbol of the great American people and heritage.