Being Non-White is "Playing the Race Card"?

Manan Trivedi is a doctor and an Iraq War veteran who is currently running as a Democrat for Congress in Pennsylvania's 6th District. He also happens to be South Asian American, the American-born son of immigrant parents from India.

Trivedi is one of six South Asians squaring off this year in congressional races against the GOP (which is even more riled up than usual over racialized issues like illegal immigration, the NYC mosque construction, and "Obamacare"). Earlier this year, Raj Goyle (a Democratic Indian American running in Kansas against Republican Mike Pompeo) made headlines when the Pompeo Twitter feed re-tweeted an article that referred to Goyle by the ethnic slur, "turban topper."

Which tells you just how low some politicians will go to win an election.

Trivedi, who has already raised more than $390,00 dollars as a traditional candidate, in part by tapping a wealthy network of politically-minded Indian Americans in Pennsylvania, is now facing off against Republican incumbent Jim Gerlach (pictured above). Recently, Gerlach launched attacks against Trivedi, saying that he "doesn't share our values."

And whose values are those? One guess.

When concerns were raised that the Gerlach campaign's statement could be perceived as playing on Trivedi's ethnic differences compared to the average Pennsylvanian voter's (85% of Pennsylvania's residents are White), Gerlach dismissively said, "The only one who has played the race card here is him, by going to Indian-American groups to raise money."

Wait, what?

The logic being used by Gerlach is that Trivedi shouldn't lobby Indian-American groups, because (somehow) this is racist. Forget that all politicians lobby their friends and families to raise money while campaigning; because Trivedi's friends and family are Indian-American, that fact apparently makes his actions uniquely racialized. Furthermore, by Gerlach's logic, any minority politician who raises money from his ethnic community is automatically "playing the race card" just by virtue of having non-White supporters. Conveniently, of course, the same isn't true of White politicians.

Gerlach's comments reek of White ethnocentrism. After all, Gerlach -- who happens to be White -- isn't accusing himself or other politicians of "playing the race card" for having predominantly White donors, or approaching predominantly White organizations for support or endorsements. Heck, Gerlach is, himself, representing the Pennsylvania Republican Party, which boasts only a single non-White face amongst its leadership. Yet, apparently this doesn't qualify Gerlach as "playing the race card." I guess things only become problematic when an Indian-American politician claims Indian-American supporters.

It's all just another way to publicly underscore Trivedi's "Other-ness", and to casually suggest that there's something inappropriate about Indian-Americans choosing to participate in this country's political system -- even though White voters and activists have been doing the same thing for generations. Gerlach seems unswayed by the monumental task the Indian-American community has undertaken in running six viable candidates for Congress this year; he's stooped to race-baiting and diversionary tactics in hopes that he can scare the electorate with his racial smears.

Thankfully, Trivedi has responded with strength and resolve, and is willing to take Gerlach to task for his shameful remarks.

Send a message to Jim Gerlach that his bigoted comments are going to cost him his job this November. Help Manan Trivedi defeat Jim Gerlach this fall: donate to Manan Trivedi's ActBlue page and help him break $400,000 in donations.

Photo Credit: Wikimedia Commons