• Live
    • Audio Only
  • google plus
  • facebook
  • twitter
News > World

Major Support For Indian American Killed in Trump-Linked Attack

  • A 51-year-old man has been charged with killing an engineer from India.

    A 51-year-old man has been charged with killing an engineer from India. | Photo: Reuters

Published 25 February 2017
Opinion

Xenophobic rhetoric continues to claim the lives of minorities in the United States.

The family of the Indian American who was shot and killed Wednesday in a hate crime which has been linked to the rhetoric of U.S. President Donald Trump has received overwhelming levels of support, after a friend created a GoFundMe campaign to rally behind the family.

RELATED:
US Civil Rights Group Creates 1st Anti-Asian Hate Crime Tracker

Alok Madasani and Srinivas Kuchibhotla, 32, were enjoying a casual drink after a long day’s work in a Kansas City Austins Bar and Grill, when 51-year-old navy veteran Adam Purinton is reported to have racially abused the pair.

After Purinton was asked to leave the bar by the manager, he is reported to have returned, yelling “get out of my country” before opening fire on the pair, killing Kuchibhotla and seriously wounding Madasani. Another man, Ian Grillot, was also hospitalized after intervening to help the two.

Since the tragedy, the GoFundMe campaign, which describes Kuchibhotla as the “kindest person you would meet,” has received nearly 15,000 donations, raising a staggering US$576,073 since it was set-up on Thursday. The campaign will provide support to the family in covering funeral costs and other expenses.

The shooting that occurred Wednesday night made national headlines in India, drawing widespread criticism from the Indian government and civilians alike. Outraged at the incident, people took to social media to condemn U.S. President Donald Trump's "America First" policy on immigration and jobs, arguing it has fueled a climate of intolerance.

Madasani’s father, Jaganmohan Reddy, said he had urged his son to return home to India in the months prior to the shooting.

“The situation seems to be pretty bad after Trump took over as the U.S. president. I appeal to all the parents in India not to send their children to the United States in the present circumstances,” he told the Hindustan Times.

The widow of the deceased, Sunayana Dumala, told the New York Times that she had long been worried about similar shootings she had read about in the newspaper.

“I was always concerned, are we doing the right thing of staying in the United States of America?” she said. “But he always assured me that only good things happen to good people.”

She is now demanding answers from the U.S. government. “What are they going to do to stop this hate crime?" she asked the Kansas City Star.

Just 10 days into Trump’s presidency, the Southern Poverty Law Center recorded a surge in hate crimes across the country. Among the many types recorded, the center lists “anti-immigrant” as the top motivation for committing a hate crime. The number of hate groups operating in the country also rose to near-historic highs in 2016, a phenomenon the center attributes to Trump’s election.

RELATED:
Trump Victory Sees Spike in Hate Crimes

But the White House has played down any link between Trump’s rhetoric and far-right violence on the streets, with Trump spokesperson Sean Spicer branding the link in relation to Wednesday's shooting “absurd.”

Meanwhile, the Indian embassy’s spokesperson in Washington has expressed “deep concern over the incident" while urging the U.S. government to push ahead with a "thorough and speedy investigation."

Comment
0
Comments
Post with no comments.