Asian Indians slurred as American Indians

Here's a telling story. How do you insult people of Asian Indian descent? If you're a racist idiot, by comparing them to "savage" American Indians:

Cardiologists Accuse Hospital of Discrimination

By Emily RamshawThe e-mails and memos written by administrators and doctors at Citizens Medical Center here about three of their colleagues of Indian descent are, at best, derogatory. An operating room chief wrote of trying to force “the Indians off the reservation.” Others wrote about their “Indian troubles,” or labeled the hospital’s two rival cardiology practices as “the Cowboys” and “the Indians.”

At worst, they could be considered racist: “I feel a sense of disgust but am more concerned with what this means to the future of the hospital as more of our Middle-Eastern-born physicians demand leadership roles and demand influence,” David P. Brown, chief executive of Citizens Medical, wrote in a 2007 memo to himself. He continued, “It will change the entire complexion of the hospital and create a level of fear among our employees.” Comment:  This insults two ethnic groups by isolating and comparing them. It suggests that all Asian Indians are the same and they're all like American Indians, who are also all the same. So it's not only racist, it's doubly racist.

And consider how juvenile it is. Comparing Indians to Indians is something you'd expect to hear on a playground, not in a professionally-run hospital. What's next: doing a "ching chong" imitation for Asians or a rap song in Ebonics for blacks?

For more on the subject, see Conservatives Use "Language of Savagery," Grinding Indians into the Ground, and Turbaned Indian Offensive, Chief Wahoo Okay?

Below:  "Drs. Harish Chandna, from left, Ajay Gaalla, Dakshesh Kumar Parikh, cardiologists, in the waiting room of their office in Victoria." (Caleb Bryant Miller for The Texas Tribune)