45. Let me have some Indian goodies to eat before protesting against Indians
We all are aware what is happening all over the world where just a few years back we used to hear the slogan like ‘global village’ and ‘the world is one’.
Today I saw a viral video shared by a friend who is a doctor in London.
Yesterday, more than the estimated 120,000 people marched through central London to protest against immigration considered to be one of the UK's largest right-wing demonstrations in recent times.
During the protest, a part of the ‘Unite the Kingdom’ march, people were chanting ‘We want our country back’. The police said that some of its officers were kicked and punched but otherwise it was a peaceful march.
The viral video shows an anti-immigration protester buying an onion pakora, our own popular street snack, during the demonstration led by Tommy Robinson.
My doctor friend also shared some comments – the most interesting was – “Let me have some Indian goodies to eat before protesting against Indians.”
As per the official records the most sizeable group of Londoners born outside of the UK are those born in India followed by Romania and then Poland.
History books suggest that the term immigration was coined in the 17th century. Those were the days when it became necessary due to natural calamities and sometimes even war. It was not an issue as the people were accepted without any questions.
However, during the last 85 years (since the great depression) people were forced to migrate to different countries to escape civil war, and to seek better economic opportunities with no intention to go back to their own countries ever.
Anti-immigration has become a political tool now. This is something that will only explode in near future in a big way.
I remember something that happened in Germany in 1998 which was hailed around the world. It was a big step towards accepting people without asking the name of their original country if they were good to their chosen country.
It was probably the first time Dr Ravindra Gujjula, born in Kanigidi, district Prakasham in Andhra Pradesh, an Indian born became the Mayor of Altlandsberg (Germany).
In fact, his father wanted him to become a poet and named him in honour of the great poet, Ravindranath Tagore. Bowing to his father's wish, Ravindra wrote a few poems but he was deeply shattered when his sister Bharati died at the tender age of five of an actually curable disease.
This motivated him to become a doctor.
Destiny took him to Ernst-Moritz Arndt-University in Greifswald and then at the Humboldt-University in Berlin. Ravindra became a doctor but his father's meticulously planned upbringing did not go in vain.
In 1988, when the German Democratic Republic (GDR) was still in existence, Ravindra wanted to be an independent candidate for the municipal elections.
But the chief of Elections refused his candidature on the pretext that Dr. Gujjula is the only foreigner in Altlandsberg and therefore represents only himself.
In 1991, in reunited Germany, he again stood as an independent candidate and was selected Councilor for Culture and Education and made a place for himself with his constructive thinking.
The citizens repaid all his endeavors by giving him 81 percent of the votes in 1998 and ultimately Dr. Ravindra Gujjula became the Mayor of Altlandsberg.
Those were the days.
(Top Photo Courtesy: https://foodsandflavorsbyshilpi.com, with crispy thanks)