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In this episode Mark interviews Premee Mohamed, a Nebula, World Fantasy, Ignyte, Locus, and Aurora award-winning Indo-Caribbean scientist and speculative fiction author based in Edmonton, Alberta. Prior to the interview, Mark shares comments from recent episodes, a personal update, and a word from this episode's sponsor. This episode is sponsored by the Show, Don't Tell Writing Podcast with Suzy Vadori. In this weekly show, Suzy brings you writing techniques, best practices, motivation, inspirational stories from real live authors out there making it in the world, and actionable advice that can help you turn that book you're writing into the bestseller you know deep down that it can be. In their interview, Mark and Premee talk about: How Premee introduces herself as a writer in different contexts The snobbery that can exist in the CanLit spaces in relation to sci-fi/fantasy/horror The generous umbrella of the term "speculative fiction" Being drawn to write in the speculative genres because that's what she liked to read The first completely partially illustrated story Premee remembers finishing when she was eight years old The Stephen King anthology (authorized stories set in the world of The Stand) was the most Premee had been offered for a short story ever The agent Premee found for selling her first book and having worked with them for almost nine years The common response of a multi- or cross-genre book confusing publishers who liked it because they didn't know "where to put it" on the shelves How the awards Premee has won so far haven't really moved the needle at all in terms of increasing book sales Premee's forthcoming books that are coming from the big five publishers Loving the writing anyway, and how Premme would write even if she wasn't publishing Premee's experience as a Writer in Residence at the Edmonton Public Library Advice Premee would offer to writers looking for a publisher to sell their writing to How she used to be a pantser but is now a completely converted outliner How Premee's only self-publishing experience being a painful experience because it was work she did not enjoy, but how it led to her selling enough units of the ebook that it helped cover a trip to Dublin for a World Con The powerful impact of Canada's PLR program for writers And more... After the interview Mark reflects on a few items that came up in the conversation. Links of Interest: Premee Mohamed's Website EP 478 - The Pinocchio Problem EP 475 - Writing Emotions and Making the Reader Feel with Jeff Elkins Substack Article - Hat Switch on the Highway: A Tale of Two Marks Manuscript Report (Mark's affiliate link - use MARK10 to save 10%) Buy Mark a Coffee Patreon for Stark Reflections Mark's YouTube channel ElevenLabs (AI Voice Generation - Affiliate link) Mark's Stark Reflections on Writing & Publishing Newsletter (Signup) Stark Realities Book An Author's Guide to Working With Bookstores and Libraries The Relaxed Author Buy eBook Direct Buy Audiobook Direct Publishing Pitfalls for Authors Wide for the Win Mark's Canadian Werewolf Books This Time Around (Short Story) A Canadian Werewolf in New York Stowe Away (Novella) Fear and Longing in Los Angeles Fright Nights, Big City Lover's Moon Hex and the City Only Monsters in the Building Once Bitten (Novella) The Canadian Mounted: A Trivia Guide to Planes, Trains and Automobiles Yippee Ki-Yay Motherf*cker: A Trivia Guide to Die Hard Merry Christmas! Shitter Was Full!: A Trivia Guide to National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation I Think It's A Sign That The Pun Also Rises   Premee Mohamed is a Nebula, World Fantasy, Ignyte, Locus, and Aurora award-winning Indo-Caribbean scientist and speculative fiction author based in Edmonton, Alberta. She has also been a finalist for the Hugo, British Fantasy, British Science Fiction, Ursula K. Le Guin, and Crawford awards. In 2024, she was the Edmonton Public Library writer-in-residence, and she has taught at establishments including the Banff Institute for the Arts, the Clarion Workshop, and the Carl Brandon Society. She has judged short fiction contests for CBC and Alberta Views Magazine and can be found on her website at www.premeemohamed.com. She is represented by Michael Curry of DMLA.   The introductory, end, and bumper music for this podcast ("Laser Groove") was composed and produced by Kevin MacLeod of www.incompetech.com and is Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0

APEX Express is a weekly magazine-style radio show featuring the voices and stories of Asians and Pacific Islanders from all corners of our community. The show is produced by a collective of media makers, deejays, and activists. On this episode, host Miata Tan is joined by guests from the South Asian Coalition, an emergent national network committed to collective liberation and solidarity. Together they explore what it means to build South Asian political power in this moment—and how cross-movement solidarity can shape a more just, multiracial future. Learn more about the South Asian Coalition Website | Instagram | Policy Priorities   The South Asian Coalition was convened in October 2024 by: Manavi, Alliance of South Asians Taking Action, Muslims for Just Futures, and Raksha.   Transcript ​[00:00:00]  Miata Tan : Hello and welcome. You are tuning in to APEX Express, a weekly radio show uplifting the voices and stories of Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders. I'm your host, Miata Tan. Tonight, we're focusing on South Asian communities and the organizers working to build political power. South Asians are one of the fastest-growing racial groups in the United States, Over six million people [00:01:00] and roughly a quarter of the Asian American population. South Asian is used as a broad umbrella term for people with roots in countries such as India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal, Sri Lanka, and sometimes Afghanistan. Though exact definitions can vary across communities and organizations. And as we'll talk about tonight, within the South Asian diaspora who call the United States home, you have a mix of nationalities, religion, immigration status, and more. Tonight, I'm joined by four people working to address the issues impacting South Asian communities in the US and beyond. At a time when questions of belonging, safety, and political power continue to shape immigrant communities across the country, South Asian organizers are building new forms of solidarity while also grappling with the diversity and complexity within their own communities. The first voice you'll hear is Sabiha Basrai Sabiha is the daughter of Muslim Gujarati immigrants and has been [00:02:00] organizing with the Bay Area-based Alliance of South Asians Taking Action, or ASATA, since 2009. Here's Sabiha helping us to understand how South Asian political organizing has evolved in the United States, especially in the post 9/11 era Sabiha Basrai: Thanks for the opportunity to do some reflection this year marks the 25th anniversary of 9/11, which was a real a political flashpoint that absolutely changed my life because I was a 19-year-old college student trying to figure out a lot of things about how the world works and my place in it, and my own identity and the multiple identities I hold. Uh, and also where my responsibilities lied in solidarity, not just with other Muslims who were being targeted, but our broad immigrant diasporas and allies, uh, who have experienced discrimination in different forms from the state. So thinking about the ways in which- organizing happened in the, months and years after 9/11 to support immigrant [00:03:00] rights that was really a time in which new projects formed, um, or existing projects kind of found a new focus. ASATA as an organizing project, as a group of volunteers, has both done things like shown up to support folks being called up for the NCR's Special Registration Program and also participate in direct action protests in solidarity against the war, and has continued to be part of coalitional work regionally in the Bay Area. And, you know, more recently, uh, when we think about the ways in which our communities under, are under increased pressure with the Trump administration's immigrant policies, there have been also opportunities to build more relationships and make sure that as we advocate for our community's rights, we're doing so in formation with others, not just focusing on one particular bad piece of legislation, but connecting that to a larger story, to really build towards liberation for all of us. I'll [00:04:00] just add, too that those relationships that were kind of seeded and invested in in that moment of crisis and anxiety and fear have endured in many ways to now. The fact that that very ecosystem is actually growing in this moment is a testament to the relationships that were built in those days. Miata Tan : That was Sabiha Basrai grounding us in the history of South Asian political organizing in the US. As she mentioned, for many South Asians, 9/11 marked a particularly mobilizing moment, one that helped our communities organized and built solidarity. To help us better understand how that moment influenced the evolution of progressive South Asian activism, we now turn to Deepa Iyer, South Asian American writer, strategist, and lawyer. Deepa leads projects on solidarity and social movements at Building Movement Project and brings more than 25 years of experience in Asian American organizing and advocacy Deepa Iyer: I think that I would say that there [00:05:00] were, looking back, a couple of trends and themes that we can pull out from that time. one is that there was definitely a shift in the general consciousness of South Asian communities about our place in American society, our understanding of racism, Islamophobia, and also the role of the state. And so we had a situation where both hate violence and state violence were actually being endured by South Asian, Muslim, Arab communities. And so I think that there was a shift in the ways in which our communities began to think about ourselves in the United States. A second piece is the growth of a field, an ecosystem of South Asian organizations in the wake of the attacks and the global war on terror. So we began to see a lot of groups that were actually formed or becoming more staffed up in the weeks and months after 9/11. For example, the Sikh [00:06:00] Coalition was actually birthed the evening of the attacks, and an organization that I was close to, SALT, was also emerging and forming in the months after 9/11 as well. So we began to see that a, a field was growing. And the third, sort of theme I would point out that Sabihah alluded to is this sense of solidarity, that instead of sort of being siloed as, you know, South Asians working within just our communities and just talking about certain specific issues, there was real sense that we needed to collaborate and build bridges with Arab, Muslim, Sikh, and, Black communities in the United States to understand the trajectory of racism and xenophobia, and how they were all kind of coming together in the weeks after 9/11. Those three themes and trends are what, when I look back, I see coming up over and over again in our messaging and in our advocacy. Miata Tan : [00:07:00] That was Deepa Iyer, as you heard from Deepa, collaboration across movements was essential in helping South Asian communities to understand and respond to the waves of xenophobia in the wake of 9/11. Now we turn to Rajiv Narayan and Farah Mahesri, who lead national policy work at the Alliance of South Asians Taking Action, or ASATA together they launched and now co-lead ASATA's new political base building group, ASATA Power. Rajiv begins by reflecting on what South Asian communities are facing today and what has and hasn't changed since 9/11. Rajiv Narayan: I think unfortunately many of the challenges present in the early 2000s remain today. They take new form. Some have evolved and transformed, but they were ex- existed in, in much the same form following 9/11. One of the, the instances in which I, I learned about that is at the recent South Asian Coalition convening where we did this exercise in mapping a number of [00:08:00] historical and present day events, as well as a future vision of things that are important to our organizations and to our movements. And something that we reflected on together in the convening is that a number of these attacks on our communities have waxed and waned, uh, at different periods in time, dating back to the, the 1960s and truly at, even at the beginning of, you know, the 19th century and the late 18th century. And so, to answer your question specifically, in the early 2000s, like Deepa and Sabihah mentioned, we've dealt with, uh, an incredible expression of Islamophobia of, uh, anti-Brown and anti-Black racism and hate speech. There was a, in, in general a skepticism and unwelcoming of South Asian communities. And unfortunately with the current federal administration and political discourse in our country, uh, a number of those same themes are relevant today and take on similar forms, whether they're in [00:09:00] response to what the federal administration is doing in countries like Iran or previous administrations have done in Afghanistan or Pakistan. I think all of those events underscore all the more so that it's important for our organizations to, organize together, much as we did in the early 2000s, to address these harms, to remember what they look like at previous stages of history, and to fight to prevent them again from happening in the future. Miata Tan : Farah, perhaps you could speak a bit to the organizing. What did that look like, a few years ago, and what does that look like today? How has that changed? Farah Mahersi: Rajiv and I started ASATA Power a couple of years ago specifically to be able to look forward to practice radical imagination, and fight for not just protection of our communities, which we will always do. That is built into our DNAs. It's what we know. It's how we move. And also to fight for things that we want, to build the world that we want to live in so that we're not constantly caught in these cycles. And as we're doing [00:10:00] that, we are learning a lot about how organizing is happening today, the BLM movement, Black Lives Matter, and incredible street power, but also that movement's ability to change our national discourse and change what is baseline, what we should be demanding, and how we are visioning a future that is built on policies governance and hard material changes in our lives is profound. beyond that, also the Palestine solidarity movement over the last couple of years has rewritten every book about organizing. And so I think that it is an interesting moment of both a little bit of sadness, to be honest, that we are still fighting some of these same fights and we are still in some of these same dynamics that we have been for 25 years, and the profound opportunity that we have to build power and to look forward, and I think that is, more true in the Bay Area than it is almost everywhere else. Uh, because of what our workforce looks like, because of the sheer [00:11:00] amount of wealth that is accumulated in this little corner of our world, and also when you look around at the political power and people who hold political power or are running for political power and elected office around the Bay Area, you could really start to see not just how South Asians are increasingly politicized and increasingly looking to build electoral and political power, but also s- very specifically progressive political power. And so when you look to Congress now, The progressive caucus is full of South Asian progressives who are leading the charge, who are doing some of this critical work, that's part of our organizing strategy, is to be part of those conversations and to continue to push and to continue to, again, advocate for policies and changes at that big level to make the future we want possible. Miata Tan : I love that. Coming together to dream and really fight. Rajiv, you are leading this work at the Alliance of South Asians Taking Action. Can you speak more to why the Bay Area [00:12:00] is a, like, a distinct microcosm in this progressive South Asian movement? Rajiv Narayan: Of course. So Farah and I, we both work together at ASATA Power, and ASATA is sort of political power building project within the auspices of, uh, ASATA which has been operating in the Bay Area for more than 25 years now. I think what makes the Bay Area a microcosm of the South Asian diaspora is a tremendous amount of diversity and, uh, a set of interrelated intersectional challenges. So you have, uh, folks of South Asian descent with all different immigration histories. So I'm, for example, a person, um, who has birthright citizenship in the United States as I was born here. But there are folks who immigrated here, like my parents and had to attain their citizenship uh, through the, the US legal system, and folks beyond that who are refugees or asylees or are undocumented due to a variety of political and social and economic pressures. And so we all coexist in this same space across an economic gradient. So there are folks [00:13:00] who are very well compensated in the tech sectors and healthcare sectors sometimes, uh, characterized, uh, as part of a, a model minority myth, um, as representatives of the South Asian diaspora, um, within the San Francisco Bay Area and the United States broadly. And then there are whole variety of South Asians who are working in less well-compensated, often quite exploited industries. For example, in, care industries as people who are providing childcare or senior care services, people who are working in the restaurant industry folks who are lesser compensated within healthcare as well as in tech industries and other ways. Of course, those economic positions interact with the political and legal system. So for example, even if a person might be, um, well-compensated in a tech job in the Bay Area, um, which they attained by way of an H-1B visa that person might be subject to exploitative labor conditions based on the, uh, the legal configuration of how H-1B [00:14:00] visas are treated. For example, that you depend on your employer for your immigration status in this country, which changes the worker-employer relationship in a way that makes it very difficult to identify workplace abuses. beyond that, we also have a diverse range of South Asians across the age gradient. So we have folks who are quite young, who are in Gen Z, and are entering politics in a completely different way than somebody like myself or Deepa entered politics at, in earlier in, in our lives and experience it today, which provides an opportunity for us to learn from earlier generations and to also share lessons from our political experience. So like with many things, the Bay Area has it all, the good and the bad, and ASATA and ASATA Power work within that, that space to identify opportunities for solidarity. Miata Tan : That was Rajiv Narayan and Farah Mehestri. Through their work with the Alliance of South Asians Taking Action, or ASATA, Rajiv and Farah are helping to build South Asian political power here in the Bay Area and [00:15:00] nationwide. The ASATA team and all four of our guests tonight are connected through the South Asian Coalition, a network of local and national organizations focused on advancing policy issues affecting South Asian communities and building shared spaces for strategy and collaboration. To better understand this evolving movement of progressive South Asian action, let's return to Deepa Iyer, who shares how and why this coalition came together Deepa Iyer: Yeah. I really appreciate Rajiv bringing up, um, how- what is happening in the Bay Area is part of a larger movement. And what I would say about this ecosystem, this field that I talked about earlier, and I've been able to understand this through the course of the work I've done, but also a book I've written about post 9/11 America, is that so much happens on the coasts, and we often forget that there are organizations and are communities that are really [00:16:00] growing in other parts of the country, right? You know, I grew up in Kentucky, um, and there are places like Kentucky and Indiana where you are seeing, um, more South Asians settle and build their lives there. So one of the things that I think has been important in thinking about as we come up on this 25th anniversary of 9/11 is how our coalition of South Asian groups, how that field has grown with these additional organizations, in geographic areas that are different, as well as the ways in which folks are organizing. So now we've got, for example, groups that are working with Bhutanese refugees or Nepali-speaking community members, or groups that are organizing around the exploitation of community members based on caste. These are, um, really important movement interventions and organizations that are growing. one of the key aspects of network infrastructure is the ability to connect with each other, [00:17:00] not to flatten our experiences and say we're all the same, but to actually find some threads of commonality in our shared struggle and our experiences, and to also know that together as collectives, as Farah mentioned earlier, we can actually build the futures that we wanna see. One of the really, I think, inspiring pieces of coalition building that I've been fortunate to work with and support along with, um, everyone here is the South Asian Coalition, which is this emergent network of now 35 organizations around the country, and this coalition really seeks to build relationships and strengthen relationships, engage in peer learning and skills building, make it clear that there are certain policy issues that we need to uplift and to advocate around, and to create opportunities and pathways for solidarity with larger movements. This coalition and the infrastructure that it's been [00:18:00] creating is a way for us to look at our ecosystem of South Asian organizing in this moment, and to really see what happens when we galvanize our power collectively. Miata Tan : and Deepa, can you share a bit about the various co-conveners that make up the South Asian Coalition?  Deepa Iyer: So the South Asian Coalition, um, as we've mentioned, is this emergent network of groups that address various issues but are aligned around shared values. And the groups that really came together to co-convene it include Asad the Power, as well as Muslims for Just Futures, Raksha, which is an organization in the South, and Manavi, which is based in New Jersey. And these four organizations really had the vision to set up the structure for the coalition. the organization where I work at, Building Movement Project, supports the coalition through infrastructure, so providing facilitation, providing resources, policy analysis, and creating the container to support [00:19:00] movements in that way, which is so critical for coalitions. Miata Tan : That was Deepa Iyer a South Asian American writer, strategist, and lawyer. after the break, we'll hear more from organizers and advocates working to address issues shaping South Asian communities today. Stay with us  [00:20:00] [00:21:00] that was “Phenom” by Thao and the Get Down Stay Down. You are tuned into [00:22:00] APEX Express on 94.1 KPFA, a weekly radio show uplifting the voices and stories of Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders. I'm your host, Miada Tan. Tonight, I'm joined by four people who are working to address the issues impacting South Asian communities in the US and beyond. Back in March, organizers, advocates, and community leaders from across the country gathered in Washington, DC, for a national convening focused on the challenges and possibilities facing South Asian communities today. Here's Sabiha Basrai with the Alliance of South Asians Taking Action, or ASATA. She speaks about how this coalition of progressive South Asian groups formed and why this moment called for it. Sabiha Basrai: So this new emergent South Asian Coalition had its first convening in Washington, DC in March, and this was, the culmination of, a little over a year of monthly Zoom calls which started because [00:23:00] we knew we were on the verge of a Trump re-election. Uh, we knew that there was this ecosystem of South Asian activism and organizing across the country. Some of us knew each other from previous collaborations, but some of us didn't. New organizations were forming, and there was this recognition that we need each other in order to face what's coming, and we are stronger together. And we know that being South Asian is not a monolith, uh, that we deal with within our own communities based on labor exploitation, caste discrimination, anti-Muslim violence. And when we talk to each other, when we connect, we give ourselves the best chance at being able to move through those pieces of pain and build towards a future where we can all feel a sense of belonging, feel represented, and an agency in shaping that future together. So what started with a few conversations with a few folks, grew steadily [00:24:00] and, um, and through some intentional work to, to kind of invite each other in, which is of course an ongoing process, we were able to unite under this umbrella called the South Asian Coalition. Uh, we committed to some shared political points of unity and kind of community agreements to really set some expectations with one another on how we could move well in formation. And, made sure we had pathways to share information with each other so that someone like me working in Oakland could understand what, uh, someone working in Texas or in Georgia was facing, what local policy positions they were needing to, to navigate. And, uh, we could give each other advice, give each other moral support, and also sharpen our political understandings. So, uh, these kind of, uh, regular check-ins was one way of just understanding what we were all facing and feeling connected. But, actually being together in person was remarkable. I cannot overstate how much of a difference it makes to be able to share [00:25:00] space and see each other as whole people and not just representatives of a particular organization or a particular issue area, and, have those in-between moments where we actually build, build some friendships. One of the things that was also really important for me to understand when we met together was just how important that intergenerational work is. we had folks in the room who were, in their 50s and 60s who had been doing this work for decades. And we had folks in the room who were in their 20s for whom 9/11 was, something that happened in history. The conversations that were happening across generations informed the way that we think about ourselves as a coalition and helped me also to let go of some of the constraints that, kept my imagination small about what we were capable of. I was really grateful that so many people attended and chose to prioritize that work. It's hard, you know, to take a pause from The daily work to leave, fly to [00:26:00] DC take those risks as well because for many of us, uh, going through TSA is no small thing. There's a lot of harassment and racism that still permeate, you know, these institutions. So not to minimize just the effort that ta- it takes to convene and really make the most of our time together. One of the things that we did while we were in DC together was hold a congressional briefing to really, uh, amplify and share the issues that were coming up for our communities that folks were already working very hard on. Miata Tan : That was Sabiha Basrai with the Alliance of South Asians Taking Action, or ASATA. Now let's return to Rajiv Narayan, another member of the ASATA team and co-lead of their political action group, ASATA Power. Rajiv will take you inside the congressional briefing that Sabiha mentioned and how South Asian organizers from across the country shared the issues shaping their communities and what support is needed now Rajiv Narayan: We in ASATA Power worked in [00:27:00] collaboration with a number of the organizations in the South Asian coalition, to put together a congressional briefing on the issue of South Asians and immigration in the heart of Washington, DC, in the halls of Congress in Capitol Hill. And we were fortunate to do so in collaboration with Representatives Pramila Jayapal and Grace Meng. we had a number of, speakers representing, different perspectives and political struggles within the South Asian, uh, space in the United States, especially as it relates to immigration. So, for example, we had representatives from the Dalit Solidarity Forum talking about the plight of oppressed workers, caste-oppressed workers, in New Jersey working in a Hindu temple.  ​ Dr Roja Sunganthy-Singh – Dalit: I stand here as a Dalit, formerly known as an untouchable in India's caste system, speaking for over two hundred skilled Dalit artisans who were brought to the US from India to build the largest Hindu temple in New Jersey. In their words, ” We are the Indian stone workers of America, workers [00:28:00] rescued by the FBI in twenty twenty-one from forced labor conditions constructing the BAPS temple in New Jersey. we were brought to the US on R one visas and compelled to perform construction labor for over eighty-seven hours a week and paid just a dollar twenty an hour. Rajiv Narayan: We heard from, um, the executive director of the Sikh Coalition talking about Sikh truck drivers and religious workers and their experience under the federal regime's, uh, rule-making efforts. Harman Singh – Sikh Coalition: Uh, Punjabi Sikhs began entering the US trucking industry in large numbers during the nineteen eighties, and Sikh truck drivers and business owners have played a critical role in addressing driver shortages over the past several years. Unfortunately, Sikhs in this critical industry have become the subject of harmful rhetoric and policy from this current administration. These drivers are being excluded solely because of their specific immigration status and regardless of their driving histories, skills, knowledge, or English proficiency.  Rajiv Narayan: We heard from, the executive director of Asian Refugees United, who [00:29:00] spoke about the experience of Bhutanese refugees who have been rendered stateless by the current administration's, deportation efforts Robin Gurung – ARU: Because of the ethnic cleansing campaign of Bhutan government, more than hundred thousand Bhutanese citizens were forced to flee the country. For twenty years, I lived in a refugee camp in Nepal. In 2008, the government of this country came to rescue us. We were promised safety and security. But last year, that promise was broken. As of March 2025, over seventy of our community members are deported to Bhutan, the same country that persecuted us and made us refugees. These community members are kidnapped from their homes and jobs. They have been taken from their routine ICE check-ins. We know due process was not followed. Rajiv Narayan: We also heard from the executive director of Raksha, a domestic violence organization based in the Southern United States that has played an instrumental role in supporting South Asians who have been the victims [00:30:00] and who are now survivors of domestic and intimate partner violence, about the needs for supporting these kinds of organizations, with federal dollars and through the grant-making systems conditions. Aparna Bhattacharyya – Raksha: For thirty years, we have supported community members in navigating interpersonal violence, but also waves of racism and policy backlash.  South Asian and Indo-Caribbean survivors need safe places to turn, safe places that speak their language, understand their unique immigration and cultural needs. Raksha recently had $700,000 in OVC grants terminated by DOGE. additionally, we are still waiting for OVW sexual assault cultural funds for five months, where we have gotten no determination of whether we're getting that funding or not. Five months. Rajiv Narayan: We also heard from, the director of the South Asian American Justice Collaborative, which is currently, before the US Supreme Court in the birthright citizenship case, and [00:31:00] filed this foundational amicus brief detailing the story of South Asians in the United States going back to the 1600s. Klapana Peddibhotla – SAAJCO: Our brief pushes back against this notion that we are forever foreign.  South Asians actually arrived on these shores in the sixteen hundreds, and by the seventeen hundreds, South Asians were already asserting their rights here. In an Afghan immigrant actually fought in the Civil War in the Union Army. by the late nineteenth century, the largest farming group in Central California was formed by Punjabis. Today, South Asians are one of the largest immigrant populations in the US, but many families are caught in immigration backlogs that last for decades and make them vulnerable to the President's executive order restricting birthright citizenship. Rajiv Narayan: Across all of these speakers, you know, the, the, the message became very clear that we have so many different struggles, but they're all [00:32:00] united by a sense of solidarity for each other's political experiences under the same system of exploitation and oppression, and that there, there's so much that Congress can do in this moment to support the South Asian diaspora in the United States and, and even abroad in some cases. for ASATA Power's part, we, had the opportunity to put together over the course of the last year a policy brief on undocumented South Asians, and it was during the congressional briefing that we shared some pretty startling statistics that we, collected and collated from a number of public sources. And so what we were able to identify for the room is that there are about eight hundred thousand to nine hundred thousand undocumented South Asians in the United States, and because there are only six point five million South Asians in the US, both those who are undocumented and those who have birthright citizenship or are otherwise naturalized, refugees, asylees, and, and everyone in between. Of those six point five million South Asians One in eight of [00:33:00] them is undocumented, which is shocking and not something that somebody would understand at the outset given these problematic narratives like the model minority myth and whatever you see these days on X or Twitter about South Asian immigrants. So it's important for us not only to, to set the narrative straight and to identify both the diversity and opportunity for solidarity across our struggles, but to do so in the halls of power and to speak that truth to power directly. Miata Tan : That's Rajiv with ASATA Power reflecting on a recent congressional briefing in Washington, DC he helped to organize alongside other progressive South Asian leaders, organizers, and activists. Here's a snippet of Rajiv's opening remarks at the briefing Rajiv Narayan: I want to draw your attention to the slide behind me, they'll show a couple of images of South Asian community members who've been impacted recently by the horrific policies and practices of the federal administration. These members include Sheraz Fatehali Sachwani, a forty-eight-year-old citizen of Pakistan who died in ICE [00:34:00] detention last December. They include seventy-three-year-old Harjit Kaur, who was arrested during a routine ICE check-in, separated from her family, and deported to India without notice. I should say, I grew up seeing Harjit Kaur behind the counter at Sari Palace in Berkeley. She would help my mom try on saris. Her home was here. Her community was here. You know, these are just some of the names and stories of community members who have been affected by immigration policy as of late, and we hope that you will keep them in mind as you hear from our speakers today. There are many more we were not able to picture or name, but their stories are just as important. We'll be making many asks over the course of today's briefing. Some of those include the following: Congress should not increase funding for ICE or Border Patrol, including providing funds for detention facilities, especially in this funding moment. We have to remember that ICE is not a long-standing American institution. It was created in two thousand and two, recently, as part of the Homeland Security Act following nine [00:35:00] eleven. Miata Tan : That was Rajiv Narayan with ASATA Power speaking at a recent congressional briefing in Washington, DC. The briefing was part of a larger national convening organized by the South Asian Coalition, bringing together progressive South Asian groups from across the country. Now let's return to Deepa Iyer, who leads projects on solidarity and social movements at Building Movement Project here's Deepa reflecting on her takeaways from the congressional briefing Deepa Iyer: I think that there were so many pieces in that briefing that maybe people didn't know about that organizations are struggling with, and part of it is that, um, our communities, and Sabihah said this earlier, are not a monolith, right? And there are so many different ways in which we are experiencing what is happening right now in the United States, the fractures and the fissures that we're seeing. Rajiv spoke so well about the community needs and issues. One thing I'll lift up is actually the impact on nonprofit [00:36:00] organizations. Several of the groups that were, uh, speaking at the briefing noted how the attacks on nonprofits that are specifically working on issues like immigration in terms of losing federal funding and grants, being forced to certify that they are not addressing issues work that deal with undocumented immigrants, as well as the ways in which, um, nonprofit organizations are being, in some ways, seen as doing risky and un-American work. there is the, the exploitation of domestic terrorism as a frame that is being used right now to target certain nonprofit organizations. This is something that I think is not necessarily known to many people in terms of the ways in which national security, immigration issues are also affecting the nonprofit sector as a whole. And where I work at the Building Movement Project, we really look at the nonprofit sector and the health of the nonprofit sector, and we're [00:37:00] seeing that these types of external threats, the spotlight on organizations that are on the front lines, including South Asian groups, um, Muslim groups, Palestinian groups, that are working with, um, immigrant communities, queer and trans community members that are providing- Vital language access, service provision, community safety are really under threat right now, and this includes many of the organizations that were present at the, coalition's convening. So that's something that I also wanna lift up, that in addition to our communities who are facing the impact of the current moment in really acute ways, our nonprofit sector and our organizations are also dealing with a range of constraints and threats and difficulties. So that is one thing that came up over and over again. Miata Tan : That was Deepa Iyer with the Building Movement Project, highlighting the pressures facing the nonprofit sector right now, [00:38:00] especially as it relates to South Asian organizers, advocates, and communities. Let's return to Farah Mahesri with ASATA Pawa.  Farah Mahersi: One of the other things that I am very proud of for this congressional briefing that we did was that it was us telling our own stories and us presenting our own policy recommendations. There was no need to have, like, an expert come in and talk on behalf of our communities or try to represent our communities. We were the experts in the room, and we were really recognized and seen as that. As Rajiv mentioned, you know, there, the room was packed with Hill staffers and congressional staffers who were taking diligent notes as we spoke our truths Miata Tan : That was Farah Mahesri with ASATA Pawa reflecting on the recent congressional briefing she helped to organize, one that brought greater visibility to the experiences of South Asian immigrants. You'll hear more on how South Asian activists, organizers, and community groups [00:39:00] are mobilizing after this. Stay with us ​ Miata Tan : [00:40:00] [00:41:00] [00:42:00] That was Lion on the Hunt by Thao and the Get Down Stay Down. You are tuned into APEX Express on 94.1 KPFA, a weekly radio show uplifting the voices and stories of Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders. I'm your host, Miata Tan. Tonight, we're talking about South Asian organizing in the United States and how community leaders are responding to immigration challenges, political representation, and the shifting landscape of civil rights back in March, organizers and advocates from across the country gathered in Washington, DC for a national convening focused on the challenges and possibilities facing South Asian communities today. Here's Rajiv Narayan with the Alliance of [00:43:00] South Asians Taking Action, or ASATA, reflecting on the importance of honoring both the diversity of the South Asian diaspora and the shared struggle that connects these communities Rajiv Narayan: Something I appreciate about, your work, Miata, at APEX Express, is to highlight both that diversity of the South Asian diaspora and the many struggles and experiences that unite our political experiences and our commitment to social justice. It, it used to be, and in, in some places it still is the case, that folks will use an over-broad group to represent all of the South Asian diaspora. For example, talking about all Brown people as Indian or Desi or to, to collapse all the differences in our community. And part of the power of the congressional briefing is that we are able to show that what it means to be South Asian is at once an incredibly diverse expression and at the same time a collective expression of solidarity. We can do two of these things at the same time. We can recognize our differences and fight for each other. One of my [00:44:00] favorite takeaways that I, I heard from Deepa at the briefing is that there are some staffers that came up to her and said, “I've never heard my story, my experience, my political struggles represented in a panel in this building in front of other congressional staffers.” And that's something that we can do, and we should do more of. There are so many ways in which we can tell the stories and highlight the campaigns of folks from different parts of the South Asian diaspora who are all fighting for a better life for all of us. Miata Tan : That was Rajiv Narayan with ASATA, in the recent congressional briefing that Rajiv helped to organize through the South Asian Coalition, organizers also pointed toward the future of South Asian organizing in the United States and the role of a new generation shaping it. back to Deepa Iyer with Building Movement Project. Here, Deepa Iyer: Some of the young folks that are entering or working at nonprofits now, supporting South Asian nonprofits don't have a living memory of 9/11 and the global war on terror, [00:45:00] and they have been politicized in different ways, right, over the last eight years, for example, the pandemic global wars, et cetera. And so there are a couple of ways in which I've been thinking about how we can support South Asian young people. so for example, how can we share historical analysis and political analysis so that young people understand that they are part of a trajectory of South Asian activism that actually started well before 9/11, before the 1960s, right, and that continues to today, so they don't feel fragmented. So that's something I've been sitting with a lot. Another is around pathways into public service and community service and into the nonprofit sector. So how could we support young people in terms of building their skills, in having pathways open to them into our nonprofit organizations? And then finally, how do we support them, um, so that they, can do this work for the long run? You know, we all struggle with burnout, we all [00:46:00] struggle with sustainability. what are some lessons learned that we can pass on? What are some best practices? that's something that's been sitting with me quite a bit since the gathering that we had, and I hope that the coalition will really think about, supporting young people's leadership and finding different avenues and pathways to do that. Miata Tan : That was Deepa Iyer reflecting on how movements can better support the next generation of South Asian organizers. Within the South Asian coalition, that work also means building long-term infrastructure for better collaboration. Now back to Sabiha Basrai with ASATA. Sabiha Basrai: I'm also really appreciating that the South Asian Coalition is this model for creating a container for many, many organizations to unite as a group while maintaining regional focus and individual issue priorities. I also wanna name that the place where I first learned how to do national coalition work was as a member of the National South Asian Coalition that ASATA had been part of. [00:47:00] It was facilitated by a group called SALT which played such a critical role in the post 9/11 era and continued to then work on DACA, creating resources for undocumented South Asians, along with other issues facing our diverse diasporas. And SALT closed a few years ago. It was a decision that I don't understand and was- has really left me with a lot of sadness and confusion. but I al- I know that sometimes institutions do end, but that the work does not end and the relationships do not end. And the South Asian Coalition is this emergent space that, um, is not led by any one organization. it is a space that is being invested in collectively, and we're really moving at the speed of trust so that we can be really laying that strong foundation that supports the work ahead. I'm really sitting with the ways in which sometimes this labor of Building the container, creating the container, [00:48:00] investing in the network. It's sometimes invisible labor, but it is the most critical because without it we can have moments of mass mobilization, but then that wasn't actually building any power over the long term. And I'm really looking forward to all of the very good work ahead, because I trust the relationships and the containers that we're building. Miata Tan : That was Sabiha reflecting on the collaborative infrastructure that the South Asian Coalition is helping to build. Now let's return to Deepa Iyer. I asked Deepa what campaigns are on the horizon for the coalition, especially as this year marks 25 years since 9/11. Deepa Iyer: As Sabiha mentioned, the coalition is a space for invested leadership, and so there are lots of different campaigns that groups within the coalition are eyeing and taking on. One of them Rajiv mentioned already is the fight around birthright citizenship. And so there are groups like SACHCO and others that showed up with a South Asian [00:49:00] delegation at the Supreme Court on April 1st when that case was being heard, and it was really great to see so many South Asians out there in a delegation along with other communities, to raise their voices on this really vital, pivotal issue. And so that is a campaign that some of the groups within the coalition are going to continue to be lifting up as we get the results of that case and moving forward. Another one that you mentioned, is around the 25th anniversary of 9/11, and there are groups that are considering, along with others in other movement spaces what does narrative strategy look like as we go into this time period? How do we think about the fact that we're marking the 25th anniversary in the same year that we're marking the 250th anniversary of the United States, right? how do we use 9/11 and its anniversary as a lens through which we understand empire, through which we understand the ways in which domestic [00:50:00] policies are being recirculated against other communities? And also this piece around awareness and education. this is an opportunity to share some of the personal experiences that many of us have around that moment in time, but also the ways in which our communities have built up themselves as well as the solidarity with other communities. So I think there are lots of ways in which organizations are thinking about that anniversary and how they can, utilize that moment, to draw greater attention to our community's experiences. Miata Tan : Rajiv, Farah, would you like to add anything about upcoming campaigns and how you're thinking about the South Asian political power movement moving forwards?  Rajiv Narayan: Yeah, I'm happy to talk about one sort of continuing campaign, which is that, like I mentioned, we put together this policy brief on undocumented South Asians, and we had this great opportunity to circulate and talk about it on Capitol Hill in DC. But it's also important for us to bring that story home. And so part of [00:51:00] what we'll be doing, um, for the remainder of, of this year is identifying opportunities to do town halls both, with community members and potentially with elected officials to help educate, do political education about the nature of undocumented peoples in the South Asian community. A large part of what we did in that policy brief is to collate all these numbers to tell you, how many folks might be undocumented, what is the proportion of undocumented people in the South Asian community. But an important, equally important contribution of that report is the nature of undocumented experiences. Why do people become undocumented? What are the factors that put them in that position, and what does it mean for a person to become undocumented? How can we support them, not just in different policy prescriptions, but also the ways that we talk about undocumented people and the South Asian community as a whole? So that'll, that'll be, um, a focus that we have, uh, and a contribution that we hope to make both in the, the Bay Area and beyond.  Farah Mahersi: I'll add to that, that it is election year. It is [00:52:00] a… I feel like we say every election is a critical election, and I do believe that that is very true this year. And so ASATA Power, as a political organization, will be making endorsements and talking through not just that it is important to vote, but it is really important and critical for us in this moment to vote for progressive candidates who are part of our, what is often called like a build coalition, who are here to help us build this world that we are dreaming of, who are aligned on policy positions. The other thing that we are working on locally and nationally is around the war budget. So as a group that has been so directly impacted by the global war on terror 4.5 million Muslims around the world who have been killed by US war-making in that global war on terror, and just watching kind of what the United States foreign policy in particular over the last couple of years has been, we have a particular point of view and a particular interest on tracking and watching things like the [00:53:00] largest, request for a defense budget in US history. How are those dollars being spent, And how those dollars that are being spent abroad to do war-making are also having a boomerang effect and coming back to impact our communities at home. So the same technologies that were developed and used in war-making through the global war on terror that impacted, uh, so many of our communities around the world for 25 years, a lot of that is the same technology that ICE is now using to go after undocumented South Asians in the United States, right? And so that's another way in which we really see our struggles are interconnected, and that we are wanting to dismantle als- a lot of these systems of harm, and also, again, at that intersection between both hate violence and state oppression that's happening. Miata Tan : That was Farah Mahestri with ASATA and ASATA Power. As she shared, ASATA Power is focused on the midterm elections and how war spending and post 9/11 policies continue to affect South Asian communities today. [00:54:00] To close out, we return to another ASATA organizer, Sabiha Basrai. Sabiha Basrai: So I wanted to bring the conversation back locally to the Bay Area again, and just thinking about, the Alliance of South Asians Taking Action, which is, part of a network of AAPI and Asian organizing in the Bay Area as a space where South Asians progressive South Asians can actually build community, sharpen our political analysis, embrace our responsibilities here in the Bay Area in this political moment. And just also, lifting up that ASATA currently is working on things like the Oakland Arms Embargo or local community defense against ICE , environmental justice projects, and also looking for more ways to fight supremacist ideologies of Hindutva but in collaboration with anti-Zionist Jewish community activists. these are opportunities that we have here in the Bay Area. And also thinking about ways that we participate in mobilizations. Like, we show up for Reclaim MLK Day, [00:55:00] International Working Women's Day, May Day, the Trans March every year because we understand our responsibility to show up and to show up consistently. And so when I think about the South Asian Coalition and this moment of, okay, we've been trying to- we've built- been building towards this convening and this congressional briefing, and now we're on the other side of this moment, and we are kind of reflecting and coming back together around how we maintain this energy. Also wanted to highlight,  Some of the amazing work that many of our coalition members are, are already doing. One is Savaira, so Savaira United Against Supremacy is actually a coalition of work as well, they focused, their energy on addressing Hindu nationalism and and Hindutva ideology and the, and the many ways in which, the supremacist ideology is kind of insidiously part of institutions, policy even cultural work, uh, within our diaspora. they're so committed to both, like, [00:56:00] resisting the tides of hatred but also combating all forms of supremacist politics and the intersections between them. so their, their work has been a big part of my political education, and I'm really glad that they're part of this coalition. Every member of the coalition is bringing analysis and experience that cross-pollinates to the rest of us. So I'm looking forward to just more of that   also considering what ASATA's role is and how ASATA working in the Bay Area alongside so many other amazing organizing projects here can be strengthening those relationships nationally. Miata Tan : That was Sabiha Basrai with the Alliance of South Asians Taking Action, or ASATA.  This is APEX Express on 94.1 KPFA, a weekly radio show uplifting the voices and stories of Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders. APEX Express airs every Thursday evening at 7:00 PM. And with that, we're at the end of our time here [00:57:00] tonight. We really appreciate you for tuning in to listen, and a huge thank you to our wonderful guests. For a transcript of tonight's episode, please visit our website. That's kpfa.org/program/apex-express  We've also added links on the episode page for tonight's show so you can learn more about the South Asian Coalition, ASATA, and all of the organizations we've talked about tonight, along with their upcoming campaigns as well. APEX Express is produced by Ayame Keane-Lee, Anuj Vaidya, Isabel Li, Jalena Keane-Lee, Miko Lee, Miata Tan, Preeti Mangala Shekar and Swati Rayasam. Tonight's show was produced by me, Miata Tan. Get some rest y'all. The post APEX Express – 5.28.26 – Building South Asian Power appeared first on KPFA.

Prof. Prithi Kanakamedala will present on their project examining the life of George DeGrasse and his family, who lived on land in New York City donated by Aaron Burr in the early nineteenth century. DeGrasse, listed as being born in Calcutta, India, and often claiming to be Burrs former servant, becomes the focus of a reevaluation in light of new research suggesting Burr may have had a secret Black and Indian family in the Caribbean. This work explores the possibility that the DeGrasse family represents an early Indo-Caribbean presence in New York, and will culminate in a digital site and book chapter as part of a broader book project.

Welcome to another LEGENDARY episode of Storybeast! Our Legendaries are special guests who are an expert within their area of storytelling. In this episode, Ghabiba Weston and Courtney Shack have the pleasure of interviewing legendary Premee Mohamed.Premee Mohamed is a Nebula, World Fantasy, Locus, Ignyte, and Aurora award-winning Indo-Caribbean scientist and speculative fiction author based in Edmonton, Alberta. She has also been a finalist for the Hugo, Ursula K. Le Guin, British Fantasy, British Science Fiction, and Crawford awards. In 2024, she was the Edmonton Public Library writer-in-residence. She is the author of the ‘Beneath the Rising' series of novels as well as several novellas. Her short fiction has appeared in many venues and she can be found on her website at www.premeemohamed.com.In this episode, you'll hear:about the unity of impressionhow Premee determines if a story idea has legsPremee's way of setting up emotional arcs using an "end-feeling" with short form fiction and how this differs from her approach to novel length storiesabout inspiration and the trick to avoid falling down the rabbit holePremee's approach to writing interiorityPremee's advice on how to hone your writing craftabout Premee's latest book, THE FIRST THOUSAND TREESabout the cool winning of a rockthe easy yet addictive recipe for secret popcorn sauceFor more storytelling content to your inbox,⁠⁠⁠ subscribe to our newsletter. Feel free to reach out if you want to talk story or snacks!A warm thank you to Deore for our musical number. You can find more of her creative work on Spotify.As ever, thank you for listening, Beasties! Please consider leaving a review to support this podcast.Be brave, stay beastly!

This episode features Yashica Dutt, journalist and author of Coming Out as Dalit. We began with a discussion of her choice to write a memoir, the significance of the memoir as a genre of Dalit writing, the politics around passing as upper caste, and what her mother's role in the life taught her about Dalit feminism as a counter to Brahminical patriarchy. We then moved on to what her work as a journalist in India and the U.S. has revealed about the differences in the operations of caste in the two contexts. Finally, we ended with her coverage of the Zohran Mamdani campaign, both its promises and its failure to address the caste question head-on. Guest: Yashica Dutt is a journalist and author whose writings can be found on her Substack, Featuring Dalits and in New Lines magazine. Mentioned in the episode: Yashica Dutt, Coming Out as Dalit Rohith Vemula: an Indian PhD scholar at the University of Hyderabad whose suicide drew attention to widespread institutional casteism. Kumari Mayawati: first Dalit woman chief minister in India who served in the state of Uttar Pradesh as the leader of the Bahujan Samaj Party. BSP: Bahujan Samaj Party founded in 1984 and focused on representing the interests of Dalits, Other Backward Classes (OBCs) and religious minorities. Origin: 2023 film written and directed by Ava DuVernay based on the life and work of Isabel Wilkerson. ST/SC Act: Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989 is a landmark Indian law designed to protect marginalized communities from atrocities, hate crimes, and discrimination. Cargenie Institute study: 2024 Indian American Attitudes Survey conducted by the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. DRUM Beats: organization that mobilizes working-class South Asian and Indo-Caribbean communities. Yashica Dutt, “I reported on the Zohran Mamdani Campaign for six months and documented South Asians' rise to power in New York City” Yashica Dutt, “What Zohran Mamdani's Campaign Says About the Quiet Erasure of Caste in US Politics” Yashica Dutt, “If South Asians are prominent in the New York Mayoral Election, then where is caste?” Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/new-books-network

This episode features Yashica Dutt, journalist and author of Coming Out as Dalit. We began with a discussion of her choice to write a memoir, the significance of the memoir as a genre of Dalit writing, the politics around passing as upper caste, and what her mother's role in the life taught her about Dalit feminism as a counter to Brahminical patriarchy. We then moved on to what her work as a journalist in India and the U.S. has revealed about the differences in the operations of caste in the two contexts. Finally, we ended with her coverage of the Zohran Mamdani campaign, both its promises and its failure to address the caste question head-on. Guest: Yashica Dutt is a journalist and author whose writings can be found on her Substack, Featuring Dalits and in New Lines magazine. Mentioned in the episode: Yashica Dutt, Coming Out as Dalit Rohith Vemula: an Indian PhD scholar at the University of Hyderabad whose suicide drew attention to widespread institutional casteism. Kumari Mayawati: first Dalit woman chief minister in India who served in the state of Uttar Pradesh as the leader of the Bahujan Samaj Party. BSP: Bahujan Samaj Party founded in 1984 and focused on representing the interests of Dalits, Other Backward Classes (OBCs) and religious minorities. Origin: 2023 film written and directed by Ava DuVernay based on the life and work of Isabel Wilkerson. ST/SC Act: Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989 is a landmark Indian law designed to protect marginalized communities from atrocities, hate crimes, and discrimination. Cargenie Institute study: 2024 Indian American Attitudes Survey conducted by the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. DRUM Beats: organization that mobilizes working-class South Asian and Indo-Caribbean communities. Yashica Dutt, “I reported on the Zohran Mamdani Campaign for six months and documented South Asians' rise to power in New York City” Yashica Dutt, “What Zohran Mamdani's Campaign Says About the Quiet Erasure of Caste in US Politics” Yashica Dutt, “If South Asians are prominent in the New York Mayoral Election, then where is caste?” Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/gender-studies

This episode features Yashica Dutt, journalist and author of Coming Out as Dalit. We began with a discussion of her choice to write a memoir, the significance of the memoir as a genre of Dalit writing, the politics around passing as upper caste, and what her mother's role in the life taught her about Dalit feminism as a counter to Brahminical patriarchy. We then moved on to what her work as a journalist in India and the U.S. has revealed about the differences in the operations of caste in the two contexts. Finally, we ended with her coverage of the Zohran Mamdani campaign, both its promises and its failure to address the caste question head-on. Guest: Yashica Dutt is a journalist and author whose writings can be found on her Substack, Featuring Dalits and in New Lines magazine. Mentioned in the episode: Yashica Dutt, Coming Out as Dalit Rohith Vemula: an Indian PhD scholar at the University of Hyderabad whose suicide drew attention to widespread institutional casteism. Kumari Mayawati: first Dalit woman chief minister in India who served in the state of Uttar Pradesh as the leader of the Bahujan Samaj Party. BSP: Bahujan Samaj Party founded in 1984 and focused on representing the interests of Dalits, Other Backward Classes (OBCs) and religious minorities. Origin: 2023 film written and directed by Ava DuVernay based on the life and work of Isabel Wilkerson. ST/SC Act: Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989 is a landmark Indian law designed to protect marginalized communities from atrocities, hate crimes, and discrimination. Cargenie Institute study: 2024 Indian American Attitudes Survey conducted by the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. DRUM Beats: organization that mobilizes working-class South Asian and Indo-Caribbean communities. Yashica Dutt, “I reported on the Zohran Mamdani Campaign for six months and documented South Asians' rise to power in New York City” Yashica Dutt, “What Zohran Mamdani's Campaign Says About the Quiet Erasure of Caste in US Politics” Yashica Dutt, “If South Asians are prominent in the New York Mayoral Election, then where is caste?” Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/biography

This episode features Yashica Dutt, journalist and author of Coming Out as Dalit. We began with a discussion of her choice to write a memoir, the significance of the memoir as a genre of Dalit writing, the politics around passing as upper caste, and what her mother's role in the life taught her about Dalit feminism as a counter to Brahminical patriarchy. We then moved on to what her work as a journalist in India and the U.S. has revealed about the differences in the operations of caste in the two contexts. Finally, we ended with her coverage of the Zohran Mamdani campaign, both its promises and its failure to address the caste question head-on. Guest: Yashica Dutt is a journalist and author whose writings can be found on her Substack, Featuring Dalits and in New Lines magazine. Mentioned in the episode: Yashica Dutt, Coming Out as Dalit Rohith Vemula: an Indian PhD scholar at the University of Hyderabad whose suicide drew attention to widespread institutional casteism. Kumari Mayawati: first Dalit woman chief minister in India who served in the state of Uttar Pradesh as the leader of the Bahujan Samaj Party. BSP: Bahujan Samaj Party founded in 1984 and focused on representing the interests of Dalits, Other Backward Classes (OBCs) and religious minorities. Origin: 2023 film written and directed by Ava DuVernay based on the life and work of Isabel Wilkerson. ST/SC Act: Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989 is a landmark Indian law designed to protect marginalized communities from atrocities, hate crimes, and discrimination. Cargenie Institute study: 2024 Indian American Attitudes Survey conducted by the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. DRUM Beats: organization that mobilizes working-class South Asian and Indo-Caribbean communities. Yashica Dutt, “I reported on the Zohran Mamdani Campaign for six months and documented South Asians' rise to power in New York City” Yashica Dutt, “What Zohran Mamdani's Campaign Says About the Quiet Erasure of Caste in US Politics” Yashica Dutt, “If South Asians are prominent in the New York Mayoral Election, then where is caste?” Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/anthropology

This episode features Yashica Dutt, journalist and author of Coming Out as Dalit. We began with a discussion of her choice to write a memoir, the significance of the memoir as a genre of Dalit writing, the politics around passing as upper caste, and what her mother's role in the life taught her about Dalit feminism as a counter to Brahminical patriarchy. We then moved on to what her work as a journalist in India and the U.S. has revealed about the differences in the operations of caste in the two contexts. Finally, we ended with her coverage of the Zohran Mamdani campaign, both its promises and its failure to address the caste question head-on. Guest: Yashica Dutt is a journalist and author whose writings can be found on her Substack, Featuring Dalits and in New Lines magazine. Mentioned in the episode: Yashica Dutt, Coming Out as Dalit Rohith Vemula: an Indian PhD scholar at the University of Hyderabad whose suicide drew attention to widespread institutional casteism. Kumari Mayawati: first Dalit woman chief minister in India who served in the state of Uttar Pradesh as the leader of the Bahujan Samaj Party. BSP: Bahujan Samaj Party founded in 1984 and focused on representing the interests of Dalits, Other Backward Classes (OBCs) and religious minorities. Origin: 2023 film written and directed by Ava DuVernay based on the life and work of Isabel Wilkerson. ST/SC Act: Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989 is a landmark Indian law designed to protect marginalized communities from atrocities, hate crimes, and discrimination. Cargenie Institute study: 2024 Indian American Attitudes Survey conducted by the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. DRUM Beats: organization that mobilizes working-class South Asian and Indo-Caribbean communities. Yashica Dutt, “I reported on the Zohran Mamdani Campaign for six months and documented South Asians' rise to power in New York City” Yashica Dutt, “What Zohran Mamdani's Campaign Says About the Quiet Erasure of Caste in US Politics” Yashica Dutt, “If South Asians are prominent in the New York Mayoral Election, then where is caste?” Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/american-studies

This episode features Yashica Dutt, journalist and author of Coming Out as Dalit. We began with a discussion of her choice to write a memoir, the significance of the memoir as a genre of Dalit writing, the politics around passing as upper caste, and what her mother's role in the life taught her about Dalit feminism as a counter to Brahminical patriarchy. We then moved on to what her work as a journalist in India and the U.S. has revealed about the differences in the operations of caste in the two contexts. Finally, we ended with her coverage of the Zohran Mamdani campaign, both its promises and its failure to address the caste question head-on. Guest: Yashica Dutt is a journalist and author whose writings can be found on her Substack, Featuring Dalits and in New Lines magazine. Mentioned in the episode: Yashica Dutt, Coming Out as Dalit Rohith Vemula: an Indian PhD scholar at the University of Hyderabad whose suicide drew attention to widespread institutional casteism. Kumari Mayawati: first Dalit woman chief minister in India who served in the state of Uttar Pradesh as the leader of the Bahujan Samaj Party. BSP: Bahujan Samaj Party founded in 1984 and focused on representing the interests of Dalits, Other Backward Classes (OBCs) and religious minorities. Origin: 2023 film written and directed by Ava DuVernay based on the life and work of Isabel Wilkerson. ST/SC Act: Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989 is a landmark Indian law designed to protect marginalized communities from atrocities, hate crimes, and discrimination. Cargenie Institute study: 2024 Indian American Attitudes Survey conducted by the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. DRUM Beats: organization that mobilizes working-class South Asian and Indo-Caribbean communities. Yashica Dutt, “I reported on the Zohran Mamdani Campaign for six months and documented South Asians' rise to power in New York City” Yashica Dutt, “What Zohran Mamdani's Campaign Says About the Quiet Erasure of Caste in US Politics” Yashica Dutt, “If South Asians are prominent in the New York Mayoral Election, then where is caste?” Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/south-asian-studies

This episode features Yashica Dutt, journalist and author of Coming Out as Dalit. We began with a discussion of her choice to write a memoir, the significance of the memoir as a genre of Dalit writing, the politics around passing as upper caste, and what her mother's role in the life taught her about Dalit feminism as a counter to Brahminical patriarchy. We then moved on to what her work as a journalist in India and the U.S. has revealed about the differences in the operations of caste in the two contexts. Finally, we ended with her coverage of the Zohran Mamdani campaign, both its promises and its failure to address the caste question head-on. Guest: Yashica Dutt is a journalist and author whose writings can be found on her Substack, Featuring Dalits and in New Lines magazine. Mentioned in the episode: Yashica Dutt, Coming Out as Dalit Rohith Vemula: an Indian PhD scholar at the University of Hyderabad whose suicide drew attention to widespread institutional casteism. Kumari Mayawati: first Dalit woman chief minister in India who served in the state of Uttar Pradesh as the leader of the Bahujan Samaj Party. BSP: Bahujan Samaj Party founded in 1984 and focused on representing the interests of Dalits, Other Backward Classes (OBCs) and religious minorities. Origin: 2023 film written and directed by Ava DuVernay based on the life and work of Isabel Wilkerson. ST/SC Act: Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989 is a landmark Indian law designed to protect marginalized communities from atrocities, hate crimes, and discrimination. Cargenie Institute study: 2024 Indian American Attitudes Survey conducted by the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. DRUM Beats: organization that mobilizes working-class South Asian and Indo-Caribbean communities. Yashica Dutt, “I reported on the Zohran Mamdani Campaign for six months and documented South Asians' rise to power in New York City” Yashica Dutt, “What Zohran Mamdani's Campaign Says About the Quiet Erasure of Caste in US Politics” Yashica Dutt, “If South Asians are prominent in the New York Mayoral Election, then where is caste?” Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/journalism

Send a textFor over 30 years, George Singh has shaped Carnival history as the founder of Chutney Soca Monarch, building what has become the most important Indo-Caribbean cultural competition in the world.In this in-depth conversation, George takes us behind the scenes of how Chutney Soca Monarch began in 1996, the resistance he faced bringing chutney music into Carnival, and why fusion music is Trinidad & Tobago's most authentic cultural expression. He shares never-before-told stories about Machel Montano's surprise entry and win, the early days with artists like Sonny Mann, Sundar Popo, and Cecil Fonrose, and how the competition survived COVID, funding uncertainty, and public controversy.We also explore the business realities of culture, including why government funding is essential, how tokenismcontinues to affect Indo-Caribbean art forms, and why Chutney Soca Monarch remains free to the public despite being a multi-million-dollar production. George speaks candidly about censorship, rum songs, lyrical responsibility, judging controversies, online abuse, and what it really takes to sustain a cultural institution for three decades.This episode is a powerful reflection on legacy, equity, cultural policy, and nation-building through music — and why Chutney Soca Monarch is not just a competition, but a living archive of Trinidad & Tobago's identity.

In this powerful episode of Philanthropy in Phocus, Tommy D, the Nonprofit Sector Connector, sits down with Kavita Mehra, Executive Director of Sakhi for South Asian Survivors of Gender-Based Violence, for an honest, vulnerable, and inspiring conversation about what it means to build a life of service and stand with survivors. From her working-class Jersey roots and 100-hour weeks in her mother's Hallmark store, to frontline overnight shelter work, to being fired from a fundraising role and coming back stronger, Kavita shares how every step of her journey shaped the leader she is today.Kavita opens up about being a survivor herself, the loneliness of navigating class and identity as an Indian American woman, and how those lived experiences inform her leadership at Sakhi. She and Tommy dig into the realities of direct service vs. development, the importance of professionalizing the nonprofit sector, and why fundraising is really about storytelling, connection, and aligning passion with resources. Along the way, they talk about the Imagine Awards, sector stress, and why small groups of committed people truly can change the world.You'll also hear how Sakhi has grown from a small organization with a modest budget into a $7M+ movement hub with a 50-person team, offering holistic, in-house support for survivors across the South Asian and Indo-Caribbean diaspora: a helpline and text line, safety planning, immigration and family law support, trauma-informed counseling, housing assistance, culturally specific food access, economic empowerment, job coaching, and more. Kavita and Tommy emphasize that survivors are the agents of change in their own lives – Sakhi's role is to clear barriers so they can safely make their own choices. They close with a call to action to support Sakhi or your local gender-based violence organization, because this work is truly life-and-death and impacts every community.Resources & How to Get HelpIf you or someone you know may be experiencing gender-based violence and needs support:Sakhi for South Asian Survivors

There have been two major socialist and socialist feminist victories in the last month. First was the election of socialist feminist Catherine Connolly to be president of Ireland and the other was the election of Zohran Mamdami to Mayor of NYC. But Mamdami's election would not have been possible without the groundswell of activism by grassroots groups like Indivisible, Jews for Economic Justice and DRUM Beat, a progressive grassroots south asian group that really turned out the vote for Zohran in the south asian community. And similarly the election of a leftist feminist to President of Ireland wouldn't not have been possible without the decades of struggle by Socialist feminists in Ireland. Today we will focus on these successes by talking to the activists that make these victories possible. In the first half of the show we will talk to two socialist feminist activists from Ireland to see what radical feminist organizing is happening there and what patriarchal forces they are up against. We will be joined by Camilla Fitzsimons who is a long-time socialist feminist and activist who has been involved in radical left-wing politics in Ireland all her adult life and has written two books on feminism in Ireland, “Ireland's ongoing fight for Reproductive Rights” and her new book “Rethinking Feminism in Ireland.” And we will talk to Isidora Duran who is an activist with the ROSA socialist feminist movement. ROSA was established on International Women's Day 8 March 2013 in Ireland as a feminist, anti-austerity and anti-capitalist group, seeking to build the socialist feminist wing of the growing abortion rights movement and was a major force in overturning the ban on abortion in Ireland in 2018. In the second half of the show I will talk to Simran Thind, a community organizer with the NYC grass roots progressive organization DRUM Beats. DRUM Beats is the sibling organization of DRUM ( Desis Rising Up and Moving) which is a multigenerational grassroots organization in NYC that focuses on building political power within working class South Asian and Indo-Caribbean communities to achieve radical social change . The post Irish socialist feminists Camilla Fitzsimons and Isidora Duran, and DRUM Beats organizer Simran Thind appeared first on KPFA.

Send us a text message and tell us your thoughts.What if everything we thought we knew about Caribbean literary history was incomplete? That's the premise of today's captivating conversation with Professor Alison Donnell, whose groundbreaking new book, Lost and Found: An A to Z of Neglected Writers of the Anglophone Caribbean (Papillote Press 2025), challenges the traditional narrative that Caribbean literature primarily emerged in the 1950s through male writers who migrated abroad. Through painstaking research spanning decades, Donnell reveals a far richer literary landscape populated by remarkable women writers, Indo-Caribbean voices, and authors who remained within the Caribbean, crafting work specifically for local audiences.The stories behind these recoveries are as fascinating as the writers themselves. We meet Vera Bell, the first female chief clerk of Jamaica's National Water Commission and prolific poet; Monica Skeet, who balanced a conservative teaching career with radical storytelling; and Edwina Melville, the first woman with a tractor license in Guyana who dedicated herself to representing Amerindian life. These weren't just writers – they were teachers, journalists, civil servants, and community leaders whose literary work formed part of a broader mission to build Caribbean cultural literacy.Whether you're a Caribbean literature enthusiast or simply love stories of historical recovery and justice, this episode will transform how you understand the relationship between literature, identity, and cultural memory. Listen now to discover the writers who helped shape Caribbean consciousness long before we knew their names.Alison Donnell is head of Humanities and Professor of Modern Literatures in English at the University of Bristol. She has published widely in the field of Caribbean literature, with significant contributions to the fields of literary history and culture, recovery research of women authors, and Caribbean literary archives. Her recent works reflect her ongoing commitment to exploring and expanding literary histories, including a special double issue of Caribbean Quarterly on Caribbean Literary Archives. Her latest monograph Creolized Sexualities: Undoing Heteronormativity in the literary imagination of the Anglo-Caribbean was published by Rutgers in 2021.Support the showConnect with Strictly Facts - Instagram | Facebook | Twitter | LinkedIn | YouTube | Website Looking to read more about the topics covered in this episode? Subscribe to the newsletter at www.strictlyfactspod.com to get the Strictly Facts Syllabus to your email!Want to Support Strictly Facts? Rate & Leave a Review on your favorite platform Share this episode with someone or online and tag us Send us a DM or voice note to have your thoughts featured on an upcoming episode Donate to help us continue empowering listeners with Caribbean history and education Produced by Breadfruit Media

Savita Singh X Quin- C Dey - Haare Haare Medley [Official Music Video] (2025 Bollywood Remix) Artiste: Savita Singh X Quin- C Dey Title: Haare Haare Medley Produced Mixed And Mastered By: Maha Productions A high-energy Bollywood x Caribbean fusion medley blending timeless vibes with modern beats. Performed by Savita Singh & Quin-C Dey, this remix of Haare Haare brings fresh tropical flavor to the dancefloor. Perfect for weddings, parties, and anyone who loves Desi + Caribbean music culture.

In this episode, Dr. Vera Viran discusses her research on the experiences of Indo-Caribbeans in America, focusing on cultural identity, values, and the impact of socioeconomic factors. She highlights the challenges of navigating multiple cultural identities, the importance of shared experiences within community groups, and the historical context of migration. The conversation also delves into integrating acceptance and commitment therapy in her research, gender roles, and the implications for behavior analytic practice. Watch the video of this conversation here!: https://youtu.be/sub88yCwkrc Continuing Education Credits (https://www.cbiconsultants.com/shop) BACB: 1.5 Ethics IBAO/AUABA:  1.5 Cultural QABA: 1.5 Ethics We also offer certificates of attendance! Follow us! Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/behaviourspeak/ Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/benreiman.bsky.social.bsky.social LinkedIn:  https://www.linkedin.com/in/behaviourspeak/ Contact: Dr. Vera Veran Viran Integrative Therapy https://www.viran-integrativetherapy.com/ LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/veraviran/ Instagram https://www.instagram.com/vera.viran/ Links: Dr. Sarika Persaud https://www.drsarikapersaud.com/publications Brown Gyal Diary https://www.browngyaldiary.com/post/brown-girl-bosses-meet-vera-viran-behaviour-analyst-and-ph-d-candidate Related Behaviour Speak Podcast Episodes Episode 108 with Dr. Naima Bhana-Lopez https://www.behaviourspeak.com/e/episode-108-culturally-affirming-special-education-in-panamanian-and-muslim-culture-with-dr-naima-bhana-lopez/ Episode 93 Behavior Analysis in the Caribbean with Kim Woolery, Gabi Torres, and Sloane Pharr Strang https://www.behaviourspeak.com/e/episode-93-behaviour-analysis-in-the-caribbean-with-kim-woolery-gabi-torres-and-sloane-pharr-strang/

Sarah DeSouza-Coelho is a Guyanese-Canadian actor, writer, and creative producer based in Toronto, known for her diverse range of talent and her commitment to authentic storytelling. After attending York University's prestigious Theatre program, Sarah took charge of her career, seeking out top acting coaches and securing representation. Her dedication quickly led to roles in award-winning series such as Haphead and Tinder the Web Series, as well as films Moving Boxes and Brotherhood. In addition to her work in film and TV, Sarah has been featured in over 10 national commercials and starred in the Lifetime holiday movie Mom's Christmas Boyfriend. Coming up next, she is set to take on her biggest role yet in the new Netflix holiday rom-com Hot Frosty starring alongside Lacey Chabert, Lauren Holly, Chrishell Stause and Joe Lo Truglio. The film will be released on November 13th, 2024. As a creator, Sarah is currently developing Back to One, a digital series in partnership with Colrize Productions and Shaftesbury. The show, which she conceived, follows a 20- something first-generation Indo-Caribbean artist as she navigates the pressures of cultural and industry expectations in her quest to become a network TV star. This project reflects Sarah's personal mission to bring more representation of Indo-Caribbean culture to the screen and inspire young women from her community.   Want to watch: YouTube Meisterkhan Pod (Please Subscribe)

Episode 45 of the Hindu Parenting Podcast features a conversation with Shawn Binda, host of Hindu Lifestyle on YouTube and a Hindu Educator, about Hindus in the Caribbean.Not many people know of the presence of a sizeable Hindu community in the Caribbean which has held on to its Hindu identity in the face of overwhelming odds. How they have managed to stay Hindu over many generations is a story that Hindus need to hear, as we grapple with the challenge of passing on our traditions and identity to future generations.Shawn Binda is of Indo-Caribbean ancestry and teaches Hinduism at a local mandir in Toronto, Canada, to teenagers and young adults every week. He conducts workshops with Hindu youth. Shawn has a passion for Hinduism. His insights are very valuable to Hindu parents in India and abroad.Show Notes:1:00 - Introduction5:27 - How did Hinduism Survive in the Caribbean?10:30 - Indentured Labour and How Indians got to the Caribbean15:40 - How Did They Withstand the Pressure to Convert? 18:20 - Percentage of Hindus in Different Countries of the Caribbean26:00 - Difference between Hindus raised in India and in the Caribbean32:20 - How Do You Get Kids to Come to the Mandir?38:00 - Role of Music and Dance in Hinduism41:00 - Important Message for Hindu Parents46:00 - Science, Spirituality and Hinduism48:00 - Hindus and Hinduism - The Way Forward 53:00 - ConclusionGeneral Information:For comments and podcast suggestions, please use the comments tab or write to us at contact@hinduparenting.orgPlease note that questions will not be answered on email.Do subscribe to our Substack and follow our social media handles:X/Twitter: hinduparentingInstagram: hinduparentingTelegram: t.me/hinduparentingThreads: hinduparentingFacebook: facebook.com/hinduparentingFacebook group: facebook.com/groups/hinduparentingWhatsApp channel: Hindu ParentingThe opinions expressed by guests on The Hindu Parenting Podcast are their personal opinions and Hindu Parenting does not assume any responsibility or liability for the accuracy, completeness, suitability or validity of anything shared on our platform by them.Copyright belongs to Hindu Parenting. Get full access to Hindu Parenting at hinduparenting.substack.com/subscribe

Suchitra Mattai's first solo show in New York City features a series of enormous, soft sculptures made from vintage saris. The exhibition pays homage to the artist's Indo-Caribbean ancestors and the stories of many Queens residents. Mattai joins us alongside curator Kaitlin Garcia-Maestas to discuss the show, titled We are nomads, we are dreamers, which is on display through Sunday, Aug. 25.

Critters, creatures, and things that crawl -- part of the fun of building a new world is getting to populate it with not just sapient characters, but all the flora and fauna. And sometimes, that means the things you find in the smallest corners and crevices. Guest Premee Mohamed joins us to talk about the role of bugs and other biology in worldbuilding! Bugs are a critical part of our world, performing so many essential functions that we never think about and that writers often neglect -- so, why is that? Where does our tendency towards squeamishness about bugs overlap with fears of body horror -- and how have SFF stories magnified those fears to create memorable antagonists like Xenomorphs and monsters like Shelob? How can a worldbuilder think about the health of their whole ecosystem, from those itsy-bitsy bugs all the way up to the apex predators -- and if the health of the ecosystem reflects the health of the world, how can that provide some good plot hooks for characters? All this and many, many scientific factoids are packed into this episode! [Transcript TK] Our Guest: Premee Mohamed is a Nebula, World Fantasy, and Aurora award-winning Indo-Caribbean scientist and speculative fiction author based in Edmonton, Alberta. She has also been a finalist for the Hugo, Ignyte, Locus, British Fantasy, and Crawford awards. Currently, she is the Edmonton Public Library writer-in-residence and an Assistant Editor at the short fiction audio venue Escape Pod. She is the author of the 'Beneath the Rising' series of novels as well as several novellas. Her short fiction has appeared in many venues and she can be found on her website at www.premeemohamed.com. 

For this episode Mat McDermott has a conversation with Sandy Rao, Dr Vishnu Bisram, and Dr Indrani Ramprasad about the Indo-Carribean Hindu community, the lack of representation of the Caribbean Hindu diaspora in New York City school textbooks, the current situation for Hindus in Guyana and Trinidad, and more. Resources mentioned in this episode:Viriah, Krishna GubliMaking Children Hinduphobic: A Critical Review of McGraw Hill's World History Textbooks, Kundan Singh, Krishna MaheshwariSanatana Dharma and Plantation Hinduism: Exploration and Reflections of an Indian Guyanese Hindu, Ramesh GampatModern World History HMH Social Studies 2018 — used in John Adams High School Queens NYAmerican History HMH Social Studies 2018 — used in John Adams High School Queens NYFred Stella goes to Guyana, hears that Hindu gods are demons Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

For this episode Mat McDermott has a conversation with Sandy Rao, Dr Vishnu Bisram, and Dr Indrani Ramprasad about the Indo-Carribean Hindu community, the lack of representation of the Caribbean Hindu diaspora in New York City school textbooks, the current situation for Hindus in Guyana and Trinidad, and more. Resources mentioned in this episode:Viriah, Krishna GubliMaking Children Hinduphobic: A Critical Review of McGraw Hill's World History Textbooks, Kundan Singh, Krishna MaheshwariSanatana Dharma and Plantation Hinduism: Exploration and Reflections of an Indian Guyanese Hindu, Ramesh GampatModern World History HMH Social Studies 2018 — used in John Adams High School Queens NYAmerican History HMH Social Studies 2018 — used in John Adams High School Queens NYFred Stella goes to Guyana, hears that Hindu gods are demons Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Listen to episode 5 featuring Indo-Caribbean author from Guyana Premee Mohamed. We chat about the cosmic, rainforests, and Caribbean futurisms. Music credit: Poonam Singh - GUYANA --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/caribbeansfnet/support

We are the descendants of Indian indentured laborers, brought to the Caribbean after the abolition of slavery. Our roots run deep, interwoven with Indian, African, European, and Caribbean influences, and forged through centuries of migration, colonialism, survival, and resilience. Yet, our story remains largely untold. As Brenda Beck puts it in a 1992 South Asian Diaspora article, media narratives of our people are often based on derogatory stereotypes that fail to capture the richness and complexity of our heritage.    So, what does it truly mean to be Indo-Caribbean?    For us, it means embracing a history of displacement and triumph, speaking English while cherishing our connection to the Indian language and dialects. It means losing ourselves in Bollywood movies, from the beloved "Kuch Kuch Hota Hai" to the soul-stirring "Dil To Pagal Hai" and "Kal Ho Naa Ho." It means dancing to Hindi film songs at birthdays, weddings, and basement jams, despite not knowing the meaning behind all the lyrics.   It means cultivating a love for cricket, music, and dance, drawing from our Caribbean surroundings while honoring the cultural traditions of our ancestors. Our food, a fusion of Indian and Caribbean flavors, showcases the intricate blend of spices and ingredients, enriched with local delights like plantain, cassava and, of course, Guyana Shrimp. Join us for Episode 7 of the Pepper Pot Podcast as we explore the challenges we encountered in forming our identities as descendents of Indian Indentured Workers. Together, we reclaim our narrative, honour the generations before us, and inspire those to come.   Follow and connect with The Peppa Pot Podcast online, we'd love to hear from you! Instagram YouTube LinkedIn Credits Beats and Music by Noyz Research by Ryan N. Ramdin Creative Direction by Sara-Sati Ramprashad Produced by WESTINDIECO    Resources Bahadur, G. “Coolie Woman: the Odyssey of Indenture” (The University of Chicago Press: 2014). Barratt, S. A. & Ranjitsingh, A. N. “Dougla in the Twenty-First Century: Adding to the Mix,” (University Press of Mississippi: 2021). Breman, J. & Daniel, E.V. (1992) “Conclusion: The Making of a coolie,” Journal of Peasant Studies, 19(3-4). Hearn, L. (1886) “A Study of Half-Breed Races in the West Indies,” Cosmopolitan; New York.  Jagessar, R. “Kiss and Breathe: Only the Broken Ones Will Rise” (Rohit Jagessar: 2022).  Kaup, K. (1995) “West Indian Canadian Writing: Crossing the Border from Exile to Immigration,” Essays on Canadian Writing; Toronto, Issue 57.  Mahase, R. Roopnarine, L. & Hassankhan, M.S. (eds.) (2016) “Social & Cultural Dimensions of Indian Indentured Labour and its Diaspora: Past and Present,” (Routledge, London). Sengupta, S. & Toy, V. S. (7 Oct. 1998) “Two Groups of East Indians Are Brought Closer, for Now,” New York Times.  Siddiqui, H. (1992 Oct. 15) “Children of the Raj,” Toronto Star.  New York Times, (1998 Sept. 22) “Racial Motive Is Seen in Beating of Indian- American Man in Queens,” New York Times.  

The Spanish speaking world is not a monolith. In this episode, Trisha JC McMurray helps us understand the immense diversity of the Spanish speaking world, discusses ways to approach teaching it, how to help our students see themselves and understand that there are differences but no culture is better or less. Visit the Language Lounge on Twitter - https://twitter.com/langloungepod Connect with Michelle - https://twitter.com/michelleolah Have a comment or question? Leave a voicemail at (207) 888-9819 or email podcast@waysidepublishing.com Produced by Wayside Publishing - https://waysidepublishing.com Social Media Instagram: trishajcm Facebook: Trisha J. C-McMurray Bio Trisha J.C-McMurray is a first generation American of Vincentian and Panamanian heritage. Her father is from the British West Indian island of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines. Her mother is from Panamá. Currently, she teaches first through fourth grade Spanish but has taught middle and high school Spanish and ESL. Trisha was a Teacher of the Year for Berlitz where she worked as a Spanish and English instructor. Trisha loves Spanish language and culture and has a passion to see that first generation Americans of immigrant parents value learning about and maintaining their heritage, language and culture while at the same time appreciating their multicultural identity. Trisha is very passionate teacher who loves teaching Spanish and exposing her students to the diversity of Latino people and culture as well as the British Caribbean and diverse cultures of the world. She earned her BA in Spanish from Seton Hall University and did a study abroad in Salamanca, Spain at La universidad de Pontificia. She earned her master's degree in Latin American and Caribbean Studies from NYU (New York University) where she specialized in the collective identities of the British West Indies as well as the Spanish-speaking world and cultural pluralism looking specifically at Afro/Caribbean Latino, Chinese Latino, Indo-Caribbean, Chinese West Indians as well as white West Indians. Before teaching, Trisha furthered her passion for self-representation of Latinos, British West Indians and those of Latino and Caribbean heritage through magazine publishing by attending the publishing program at NYU as well as doing an internship at LATINA magazine. Mentions Povcor out of Canada - teacher all cultures Rosa Bell https://www.instagram.com/plccultureanddiversity/ Celia Cruz. Cuban Singer Comida Chifa: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chifa Jose-Louis Orozco - Bilingual Children's Author https://www.google.com/search?gs_ssp=eJzj4tLP1TdIrrIsMyowYPQSyCpNzFPIKc0sVsgvyq9KzgcAkJMKEA&q=juan+luis+orozco&rlz=1C1GCEA_enUS1047US1047&oq=juan+louis+or&aqs=chrome.6.69i57j0i13i512l4j46i13i512l2j0i13i512l3.7020061j0j15&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8 Speaking Latino https://www.speakinglatino.com/

Curators Shereen Lafhaj and Makiya Davis-Bramble unwrap the underrepresented history of Indian indenture in the British Caribbean in the 19th and 20th centuries, through Richard Fung's 2012 documentary film, Dal Puri Diaspora. Plus, artist Salina Jane, and Chandani Persaud, tuck into contemporary Indo-Caribbean and Trinidadian food and culture in London today. In Dal Puri Diaspora, filmmaker Richard Fung travels from Toronto to Trinidad, and Guyana to India, tracing the migrations - and many variations - of a dish often called Caribbean or West Indian roti. After the Slavery Abolition Act of 1833, British and Dutch Caribbean plantation owners still required cheap labour and, having successfully petitioned the British government, recruited indentured workers from India. Over 450,000 men and women would make the five month journey by boat, working for three to five years in return for transport, a minimal wage and some basic provisions, until the scheme's end in 1917. Yet whilst 2023 marks the 75th anniversary of the Windrush migrations, these stories of Caribbean migration remain comparatively overlooked in British histories. Shereen Lafhaj and Makiya Davis-Bramble, curators of Indo + Caribbean, explore the reasons why workers decided to leave India, and how we can curate complex histories of opportunity, restriction, and resistance. They share personal experiences informed by caste, gender, and women's agency, and how museums might use AI to fill the gaps in the archive. Artist Salina Jane highlights how Indo-Caribbeans connect with their heritage today, sharing sugar cane and cocoa drawn from her own growing allotment, and Kew Gardens in South London. Plus, Chandani Persaud looks at the evolution of food and labour in the local community - from suppression to celebration and commercialisation in Western cultures - highlighting how colonialism still shapes tastes and identities. Indo + Caribbean: The creation of a culture runs at the Museum of London Docklands in London until 19 November 2023. For more on Trinidad, hear Gérard Besson's EMPIRE LINES on The Magnificent Seven (Port of Spain), Trinidad (c. 1902-1910): https://pod.link/1533637675/episode/8d33407d49e5d371cb5d4827088d896c Part of EMPIRE LINES' Windrush Season, marking the 75 year anniversary of the HMT Empire Windrush's arrival in the UK from the West Indies. Listen to the other episode with curator Isabella Maidment on Barbershop, Hurvin Anderson (2006-2023): https://pod.link/1533637675/episode/5cfb7ddb525098a8e8da837fcace8068. WITH: Shereen Lafhaj, Curator at the Museum of London, and Makiya Davis-Bramble, Curator at Liverpool's International Slavery Museum. They are the co-curators of Indo + Caribbean. Salina Jane, a British artist of Indo-Caribbean descent making art about the experience of her family's journey from India through indentured labour to Guyana. Chandani Persaud, founder of Indo-Caribbean London. ART: ‘Dal Puri Diaspora, Richard Fung (2012)'. PRODUCER: Jelena Sofronijevic. Follow EMPIRE LINES on Twitter: twitter.com/jelsofron/status/1306563558063271936 And Instagram: instagram.com/empirelinespodcast Support EMPIRE LINES on Patreon: patreon.com/empirelines

Join us on the latest episode of the Peppa Pot as we explore the history of Indentured Indian Women and the challenges they faced once they arrived in the Caribbean. Throughout the period of Indian Indentureship, the number of men recruited to work throughout the Caribbean greatly outnumbered the number of women, resulting in women being in high demand but receiving no preferential treatment and often falling victim to abuse. Despite this, for some women, arriving in the Colonies represented freedom and an opportunity to overcome generations of oppression that they experienced back home. Learn more about the history and adversity of Indentured Indian Women and how they took care of themselves by tuning in to Episode 5 of the Peppa Pot: Leggo me nah Raja. Follow and connect with The Peppa Pot Podcast online, we'd love to hear from you! Instagram YouTube LinkedIn Credits Beats and Music by Noyz Research by Ryan N. Ramdin Creative Direction by Sara-Sati Ramprashad Produced by WESTINDIECO    Resources Bahadur, G. “Coolie Woman: the Odyssey of Indenture” (The University of Chicago Press: 2014). Chatterjee, C. (1997) “Indian women's lives and labor: the indentureship experience in Trinidad and Guyana, 1845-1917”. Christian, R. “‘They Came in Ships...' Indo-Caribbean Women and their Construction of Safe Spaces in the Caribbean” in Lurdos, M. & Misrahi-Barak, J. (dir.), “Transport(s) in the British Empire and the Commonwealth.” Jagessar, R. “Kiss and Breathe: Only the Broken Ones Will Rise” (Rohit Jagessar: 2022). Khan, A. (2016) “Voyages across Indenture: From Ship Sister to Mannish Women” A Journal of Lesbian and Gay Studies, 22 at 249-280. Martinez, K. (1997), “Chutney in yuh Soca,” available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nPCJqqYCXBs&t=383s  Mehta, B. (2020) “Jahaji-bahin feminism: a de-colonial Indo-Caribbean consciousness” South Asian Diaspora 12(2) at 179-194. Mehta, B., Diasporic (Dis) locations: Indo-Caribbean Women Writers Negotiate the Kala Pani. (Jamaica: UWI Press, 2004). Niranjana, T. Mobilizing India: Women, music and migration between India and Trinidad. (USA: Duke University Press, 2006). Sengupta, S. (1995 June 5), “Relishing the Mix New York's developing a taste for the musical fusion called chutney,” Newsday.  Sharma, H. (23 December 2020) “Why Indian women became the faces of these Victorian-era postcards,” CNN, retrieved at: https://www.cnn.com/style/article/indo-caribbean-women-colonial-postcards/index.html  Singh, K. A. “Comparative Caribbean Feminisms: Jahaji-bhain in Carnival” in “Indo-Caribbean Feminist Thought: Genealogies, Theories, Enactments” (New York: Palgrave Maxmillan, 2016).

Premee Mohamed is a Nebula, World Fantasy, and Aurora award-winning Indo-Caribbean scientist, and speculative fiction author, with a prolific list of titles and publications to her name. Today, she joins us to talk about the realities of burnout in publishing, and the mental health burden that many authors labor under. It's a heavy topic, but hopefully addressed with plenty of humor, and we hope you find some of it helpful (or at least a source of commiseration!)

Do you know the meaning behind the phrase "Chay Lee Chee Nee"? It is a phrase that changed the course of history for many Indians who were recruited, coerced, or tricked into signing Indentured Contracts. They were seen as a suitable replacement for Chattel Slavery: a population that could be easily controlled and manipulated to work tirelessly in the Sugar Plantations across the Caribbean. Many were promised easy money and a better life, but the truth was far from it. With little to no education or experience beyond their North Indian villages, many were led to believe that they were headed to the promised land. But in reality, many had unknowingly signed away their freedom. The phrase "Chay Lee Chee Nee" represents the beginning of a harsh journey for our ancestors that we must never forget. So join us as we celebrate the resilience and perseverance of the Indo-Caribbean community in Episode 3 of the Peppa Pot: Chay Lee Chee Nee!   Follow and connect with The Peppa Pot Podcast online, we'd love to hear from you! Instagram YouTube LinkedIn Credits Beats and Music by Noyz Research by Ryan N. Ramdin Creative Direction by Sara-Sati Ramprashad Produced by WESTINDIECO    Resources Bahadur, G. “Coolie Woman: the Odyssey of Indenture” (The University of Chicago Press: 2014). Coolies: How Britain Reinvented Slavery. Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Cncg3yhWPI&t=310s  Chatterjee, S. (1997) “Indian women's lives and labor: the indentureship experience in Trinidad and Guyana, 1845-1917” Hoefte, R. (1987) “Control and Resistance: Indentured Labor in Suriname”, Nieuwe West-Indische Gids / New West Indian Guide, 61(½).  Hoefte, R. “Plantation Labour After the Abolition of Slavery: The Case of the Plantation Matienburg (Suriname), 1880-1940” (1987), PhD dissertation, University of Florida. Kempadoo, K. (2017) ‘“Bound Coolies” and Other Indentured Workers in the Caribbean: Implications for debates about human trafficking and modern slavery,” Anti-Trafficking Review, 9. Mangru, B. (2013 May 4) “An Overview of Indian Indentureship in Guyana, 1838-1917” https://www.stabroeknews.com/2013/05/04/news/guyana/an-overview-of-indian-indentureship-in-guyana-1838-1917/ Moss K. & Jackson, S. J. (2022) “Coloniality and the Criminal Justice System: Empire and its Legacies in Guyana” Slavery and Abolition: A Journal of Slave and Post-Slave Studies, 43(4). “New evidence emerges of indentured Indians' mass graves in Suriname” (January 23, 2013) FirstPost. Available at: https://www.firstpost.com/world/new-evidence-emerges-of-indentured-indians-mass-graves-in-suriname-599547.html Ono-George, M. (2020) “Coolies”, Containment, and Resistance: The Indentured System in British Guiana.” Ramsarran, P. (2008) “The indentured contract and its Impact on Labour Relationship and Community Reconstruction in British Guiana,” International Journal of Criminology and Sociological Theory, 1(2). Roopnarine, L. (2010) “The Indian Sea Voyage between India and the Caribbean during the Second Half of the Nineteenth Century,” The Journal of Caribbean History, 44(1).   Sheridan, R. B. “The conditions of the slaves on the sugar plantations of Sir John Gladstone in the colony of Demerara, 1812-49.” “Unearthing history: Indian workers killed 110 years ago in Suriname” (2013) India TV News. Available at: https://www.indiatvnews.com/news/india/unearthing-history-indian-workers-killed-110-years-ago-suriname-18748.html Vatuk, V. P. (1965) “Craving for a Chile in the Folksongs of East Indians in British Guiana,” Journal of the Folklore Institute, 2(1).  Vatuk, V. P. (1964) “Protest Songs of East Indians in British Guiana,” The Journal of American Folklore, 77(305).

Did you know that between 1834 and 1917, more than one million Coolies were taken across the Kala Pani, or Dark Waters, to the plantations of Malaya, Mauritius, Fiji, Trinidad, British Guiana, Jamaica, and British Honduras? In “Coolie Woman: the Odyssey of Indenture,” Gaiutra Bahadur describes how the British and other Colonial Powers transformed generations of skilled Indians into an “indistinguishable mass of plantation laborers.” Part of that transformation took part during the journey from India to the Caribbean which, for many, was unimaginably excruciating. In fact, poor ventilation, outbreaks of disease, and a lack of food was common aboard the ships used to transport Indentured Indians. When they reached their destination, they were met with a hostile and unfamiliar environment and forced to work long hours for low wages. But despite all odds, they persevered and laid a foundation that future generations would build on. Learn more about the strength, resilience, and legacy of the Indo-Caribbean community in Episode 2 of The Peppa Pot Podcast: Camphor on the Dark Waters.   Follow and connect with The Peppa Pot Podcast online, we'd love to hear from you! Instagram YouTube LinkedIn Credits Beats and Music by Noyz Research by Ryan N. Ramdin Creative Direction by Sara-Sati Ramprashad Produced by WESTINDIECO    Resources Bahadur, G. “Coolie Woman: the Odyssey of Indenture” (The University of Chicago Press: 2014).   Balachandran, G. (2011) “Making Coolies, (Un)making Workers: ‘Globalizing' Labour in the Late-19th and Early-20th Centuries,” Journal of Historical Sociology, 24(3).   Beaumont, J. (1871) The New Slavery: An Account of the Indian and Chinese Immigrants in British Guiana, W. (Ridgway, London).   Breman, J. & Daniel, E.V. (1992) “Conclusion: The Making of a coolie,” Journal of Peasant Studies, 19 (3-4).   Deolall, I. (2018 July 19) An unquiet wait, Stabroek News, available from: https://www.stabroeknews.com/2018/07/19/features/first-person-singular/an-unquiet-wait/    Dookhan, I. (1975) ‘The Gladstone Experiment: The Experience of the First East Indians in British Guiana', Symposium on East Indians in the Caribbean, University of the West Indies, St Augustine, Trinidad.   Isba, A. (2003) Trouble with Helen: The Gladstone Family Crisis, 1846-1848. History, 88(2).    Johnson, A. (8 Jan. 1977) “Guyanese man beaten, kicked at subway station in week's 3rd race attack,” The Globe and Mail.    Johnson, A. (1977  March 24) “Unhappy with Canada, subway beating victim hangs himself,” The Globe and Mail.    Joshua Bryant (1824) “Account of insurrection of the negro slaves in the colony of Demerara.”   Kamath, M. V. (1977  April 10) “Paki-bashing on the rise in Canada,” The Times of India.    Kumar, M. (2013) “Malaria and Mortality Among Indentured Indians: A Study of Housing, Sanitation and Health in British Guiana (1900-1939)” in Proceedings of the Indian History Congress, Vol. 74, pp. 746-757.   Mehta, B., Diasporic (Dis)locations: Indo-Caribbean Women Writers Negotiate the Kala Pani. (Jamaica: UWI Press, 2004).   Mishra, S. (2022) “Violence, Resilience and the ‘Coolie' Identity: Life and Survival on Ships to the Caribbean, 1834–1917,” The Journal of Imperial and Commonwealth History, 50(2), 241–263.   Misrahi-Barak, J. (2017) “Indentureship, Caste and the Crossing of the Kala Pani” Studies in Humanities and Social Sciences, 14(2).    Roopnarine, L. (2012) “A Comparative Analysis of Two Failed Indenture Experiences in Post-Emancipation Caribbean: British Guiana (1838-1843) and Danish St. Croix (1863-1868),” Iberoamericana. Nordic Journal of Latin American and Caribbean Studies. 62(1-2).   Roopnarine, L. (2010) “The Indian Sea Voyage between India and the Caribbean during the Second Half of the Nineteenth Century” The Journal of Caribbean History, 44(1).     Roopnarine, L. (2009) “The Repatriation, Readjustment, and Second-term Migration of Ex-Indentured Indian Labourers from British Guiana and Trinidad to India, 1838-1955,” New West Indian Guide/Nieuwe West-Indische Gids, 83 (1-2).   Sheridan, R. B. “The conditions of the slaves on the sugar plantations of Sir John Gladstone in the colony of Demerara, 1812-49.”   The Globe and Mail, (1977  Feb. 18) “Man pleads guilty to assault on immigrant in subway station,” The Globe and Mail.

May 5th is Indian Arrival Day in Guyana Our ancestors made incredible sacrifices and endured unimaginable hardships during indentureship. From the cruelty of plantation life to the suppression of our culture, religion, and language, they overcame it all. Join us for this auditory experience and learn about the resilience and perseverance of the Indo-Caribbean community in Episode 1: The Survival Game   Follow and connect with The Peppa Pot Podcast online, we'd love to hear from you Instagram YouTube LinkedIn Credits Beats and Music by Noyz Research by Ryan N. Ramdin Creative Direction by Sara-Sati Ramprashad   Produced by WESTINDIECO    Resources  Adamson, A. “Sugar Without Slaves: the Political Economy of British Guiana, 1838-1904,” (Yale University Press, New Haven, Connecticut: 1972). Bahadur, G. “Coolie Woman: the Odyssey of Indenture” (The University of Chicago Press: 2014). Coté, J. (2004) “Slaves, Coolies, and Garrison Whores: A Colonial Discourse of ‘Unfreedom in the Dutch East Indies” in Campbell, G. & Elbourne, E. (eds.) Sex, Power, and Slavery (Ohio University Press, Athens, pp. 561-582). Patel, D. (2016 June 11) Viewpoint: How British let one million Indians die in famine, BBC, retrieved at: https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-india-36339524 Mahase, R., Roopnarine, L. & Hassankhan, M.S. “Social & Cultural Dimensions of Indian Indentured Labour and its Diaspora: Past and Present” (Routledge, London: 2016). Roberts, G. W. & Byrne, T. (1966) “Summary Statistics on Indenture and Associated Migration Affecting the West Indies. 1834-1918. Population Studies 20(1).    “I am a Coolie": Identity and Indenture. Moray House Trust. Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dUirPfa8Fjg&t=1811s 

Indo-Caribbean community leaders discuss gender justice.

Join us for a forum with Indo-Caribbean community leaders to discuss political priorities in Queens and their career paths.

For decades, the Caribbean has gained a reputation for being one of the most homophobic regions in the world. In this episode, Ryan Persadie joins Strictly Facts for a discussion on the historic, colonial influence of anti-queer legislation and how the Caribbean and diaspora has worked together to evolve since the nineteenth century. Ryan Persadie is a writer, artist, educator, and PhD Candidate in Women and Gender studies and Sexual Diversity studies at the University of Toronto. His aesthetic and scholarly work investigates queer Caribbean diasporas, performance, aesthetics, and Afro-Asian intimacies. His current doctoral work specifically explores how Anglophone Caribbean music, dance, vocality, and embodiment offer salient archives to pursue critical erotic place- and self-making practices within and among queer Indo-Caribbean diasporas. Outside of academia, Ryan is a community organizer with the Caribbean Equality Project, and performs as a drag artist where he goes by the stage name of Tifa Wine.Connect with Strictly Facts -  Instagram | Facebook | TwitterLooking to read more about the topics covered in this episode? Subscribe to the newsletter at www.strictlyfactspod.com to get the Strictly Facts Syllabus to your email!Produced by Breadfruit MediaSupport the show

Ep. 135 features Suchitra Mattai (b.1973 Georgetown, Guyana) , a multi-disciplinary artist of Indo-Caribbean descent. Her work explores how collective and individual memory and the space of myth and folklore allow us to unravel and re-imagine colonial histories and narratives. Using both her own family's history and her research of colonial indentured labor during the 19th century, Mattai seeks to expand our sense of “history.” Suchitra received an MFA in painting and drawing and an MA in South Asian art from the University of Pennsylvania. Recent and upcoming projects include a commission for the Sharjah Biennial 14, solo exhibitions at the ICA San Francisco and Kavi Gupta Gallery (Chicago) and group exhibitions at the MCA Chicago, Crystal Bridges Museum, the Art Gallery of Ontario, the San Antonio Museum of Art, the Sarasota Museum of Art and the John Michael Kohler Arts Center. Her works are represented in collections which include Crystal Bridges Museum of Art, the Denver Art Museum, and the Tampa Museum of Art. Suchitra is represented by Kavi Gupta Gallery. Photo credit: Kendra Custer Maximiliano Duron, The Best Booths at Art Basel Miami Beach 2022 (Arghavan Khosravi and Suchitra Mattai at Kavi Gupta), From Dazzling Abstractions to Urgent Protest Art HTTPS://WWW.ARTNEWS.COM/LIST/ART-NEWS/MARKET/ART-BASEL-MIAMI-BEACH-2022- BEST-BOOTHS-1234648390/ Emann Odofu, Suchitra Mattai's Guyana exists in the gaps of the western archive, Document Journal, March 08, 2022, https://www.documentjournal.com/2022/03/suchitra-mattais- guyana-exists-in-the-gaps-of-the-western-archive/ Aron Mok, Suchitra Mattai Probes the Monstrous Misperceptions Around Immigrant Identity, Hyperallergic, March 8, 2022, https://hyperallergic.com/715678/suchitra-mattai-probes-the- monstrous-misperceptions-around-immigrant-identity/ Salomé Gómez-Upegui, Artsy, Suchitra Mattai's Soulful Works Convey Unspeakable Truths, February 4, 2022 https://www.artsy.net/article/artsy-editorial-suchitra-mattais- soulful-works-convey-unspeakable-truths Sammi Lee, Plinth UK, Monstering with Suchitra Mattai, January, 2, 2022 https://plinth.uk.com/blogs/in-the-studio-with/monster- suchitra-mattai-unit-london Sadaf Padder, A Tale of Two Countries: Finding Indo-Caribbean Shakti in Colorado, Hyperallergic, January 23, 2022 https://hyperallergic.com/705864/a-tale-of-two-countries-finding- indo-caribbean-shakti-in-colorado/ ArtNet News, Looking for the Next Big Thing? Here Are 6 Exciting Artists to Watch From Miami Art Week 2021, December 7, 2021 https://news.artnet.com/market/looking-for-the-next-big-thing- here-are-6-artists-to-watch-from-miami-art-week-2021-2043675 Alison S. Cohn, Harpers Bazar, Art Returns to Miami After a Two- Year Hiatus, Dec. 2, 2021 https://www.harpersbazaar.com/culture/art-books- music/a38402593/art-returns-to-miami-december-2021-january- 2022/ Salome Gomez-Upegui, Artsy , Nov. 30, 2021 https://www.artsy.net/article/artsy-editorial-10-best-booths- untitled-art-miami-beach-2021 Stewart Lee, “Touched by the Hand of Ithell-My fascination with a forgotten surrealist, The Guardian, October 11, 2021 https://www.theguardian.com/culture/2021/oct/11/touched-ithell- colquhoun-forgotten-surrealist-stewart-lee

On this episode Sarita Nauth chats about her beauty brand, becoming a beauty influencer and some of her favorite beauty must-have products. She also talks about being a social media manager and shares advice on how to overcome the word no plus much more! Get inspired!

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In this episode, we chat with Tifa Wine, Mx. Quest, Bijuriya, & Sundari the Indian Goddess, 4 indenture-descendant drag artists in 3 different diaspora sites, about performing gender, being Trinidadian & Guyanese, & the complex questions of identity. Tifa Wine Ryan Persadie/Tifa Wine is an artist, educator, performer, and researcher based in Toronto, Canada. His aesthetic and scholarly work interrogates the relationships and the entanglements between queer Indo-Caribbean diasporas, Caribbean feminisms, Afro-Asian intimacies, legacies of indenture, performance, embodiment, and popular culture. His writing can be found in the Stabroek News, A Colour Deep, Gay City News, and MUSICultures. He also works with and organizes with multiple community groups including the Caribbean Equality Project, and Queeribbean Toronto. Outside of academia, he also works as a drag artist where he goes by the stage name of Tifa Wine. In this capacity, he uses embodied archives of song, dance, comedy, gesture, make-up, story-telling and fashion to pursue calls of decolonial and feminist pedagogy. He has performed across the GTA and internationally and works across mediums of live performance, video, and photography. Mx. Quest Miranda EJ. Warner is a genderqueer, mixed-race, Indo-Guyanese activist and artist of many disciplines. They are the driving force behind queer clown collective #ClownsKillEmpires, as well as a member of Les Femmes Fatales Women of Colour Burlesque. A regular fixture in drag (as Sydney Quest) and burlesque (as Imogen Quest) scenes worldwide, they have spent the pandemic taking #ClownsKillEmpires online, to showcase the most ridiculous QTBIPOC digital art they can find. Bijuriya Bijuriya is a drag queen living in Montreal/Tiohtiake, Canada. She's half Indo-Caribbean and half-Québécoise. On-stage Bjiuriya is a dazzling thunderbolt of energy and quirkiness. Bijuriya is inspired by her South Asian culture and appreciated for her proud, festive and humorous outlook on Bollywood and all things Desi! With a background as a musician and interdisciplinary artist, she is currently creating a theatrical solo show to be premiered at Montréal Arts Interculturels in March 2022. Sundari the Indian Goddess Under the stage names Sundari the Indian Goddess and International Dancer Zaman, Mohamed Afzal Amin, a native of Guyana, has over 15 years of award-winning experiences as a performer. Both as Zaman and as Sundari, Amin draws on his training in Bollywood, chutney, and multiple Caribbean and classical Indian dance styles to promote Indo-Caribbean arts and culture and the multiple, intersectional identities of LGBTQ+ Caribbean immigrants in the diaspora. Zaman is one of the founding members and the lead choreographer of the Taranng Dance Troupe (Waves of the Future), a group of diversely trained dancers amplifying visibility and unity within the Caribbean performing arts community in the New York metropolitan tri-state area. And, as an LGBTQ+ rights activist and artist, he has pioneered several historic initiatives leading to queer and drag-centric performance pieces in faith-based institutions and at religious and cultural parades and festivals under both of his ionic personalities. In 2021, Amin bridged the skills, expertise and wisdom of his performer personalities into Zamandari, a consultancy, mentorship and community engagement platform to support new and up and coming Caribbean artists and connect the public with training, volunteer, and community support opportunities.

We continue our discussion with Tifa Wine, Mx. Quest, Bijuriya, & Sundari the Indian Goddess, 4 indenture-descendant drag artists in 3 different diaspora sites, about performing gender, being Trinidadian & Guyanese, & the complex questions of identity. Tifa Wine Ryan Persadie/Tifa Wine is an artist, educator, performer, and researcher based in Toronto, Canada. His aesthetic and scholarly work interrogates the relationships and the entanglements between queer Indo-Caribbean diasporas, Caribbean feminisms, Afro-Asian intimacies, legacies of indenture, performance, embodiment, and popular culture. His writing can be found in the Stabroek News, A Colour Deep, Gay City News, and MUSICultures. He also works with and organizes with multiple community groups including the Caribbean Equality Project, and Queeribbean Toronto. Outside of academia, he also works as a drag artist where he goes by the stage name of Tifa Wine. In this capacity, he uses embodied archives of song, dance, comedy, gesture, make-up, story-telling and fashion to pursue calls of decolonial and feminist pedagogy. He has performed across the GTA and internationally and works across mediums of live performance, video, and photography. Mx. Quest Miranda EJ. Warner is a genderqueer, mixed-race, Indo-Guyanese activist and artist of many disciplines. They are the driving force behind queer clown collective #ClownsKillEmpires, as well as a member of Les Femmes Fatales Women of Colour Burlesque. A regular fixture in drag (as Sydney Quest) and burlesque (as Imogen Quest) scenes worldwide, they have spent the pandemic taking #ClownsKillEmpires online, to showcase the most ridiculous QTBIPOC digital art they can find. Bijuriya Bijuriya is a drag queen living in Montreal/Tiohtiake, Canada. She's half Indo-Caribbean and half-Québécoise. On-stage Bjiuriya is a dazzling thunderbolt of energy and quirkiness. Bijuriya is inspired by her South Asian culture and appreciated for her proud, festive and humorous outlook on Bollywood and all things Desi! With a background as a musician and interdisciplinary artist, she is currently creating a theatrical solo show to be premiered at Montréal Arts Interculturels in March 2022. Sundari the Indian Goddess Under the stage names Sundari the Indian Goddess and International Dancer Zaman, Mohamed Afzal Amin, a native of Guyana, has over 15 years of award-winning experiences as a performer. Both as Zaman and as Sundari, Amin draws on his training in Bollywood, chutney, and multiple Caribbean and classical Indian dance styles to promote Indo-Caribbean arts and culture and the multiple, intersectional identities of LGBTQ+ Caribbean immigrants in the diaspora. Zaman is one of the founding members and the lead choreographer of the Taranng Dance Troupe (Waves of the Future), a group of diversely trained dancers amplifying visibility and unity within the Caribbean performing arts community in the New York metropolitan tri-state area. And, as an LGBTQ+ rights activist and artist, he has pioneered several historic initiatives leading to queer and drag-centric performance pieces in faith-based institutions and at religious and cultural parades and festivals under both of his ionic personalities. In 2021, Amin bridged the skills, expertise and wisdom of his performer personalities into Zamandari, a consultancy, mentorship and community engagement platform to support new and up and coming Caribbean artists and connect the public with training, volunteer, and community support opportunities.

We continue talking with Tifa Wine, Mx. Quest, Bijuriya, & Sundari the Indian Goddess, 4 indenture-descendant drag artists in 3 different diaspora sites, about performing gender, being Trinidadian & Guyanese, & the complex questions of identity. Tifa Wine Ryan Persadie/Tifa Wine is an artist, educator, performer, and researcher based in Toronto, Canada. His aesthetic and scholarly work interrogates the relationships and the entanglements between queer Indo-Caribbean diasporas, Caribbean feminisms, Afro-Asian intimacies, legacies of indenture, performance, embodiment, and popular culture. His writing can be found in the Stabroek News, A Colour Deep, Gay City News, and MUSICultures. He also works with and organizes with multiple community groups including the Caribbean Equality Project, and Queeribbean Toronto. Outside of academia, he also works as a drag artist where he goes by the stage name of Tifa Wine. In this capacity, he uses embodied archives of song, dance, comedy, gesture, make-up, story-telling and fashion to pursue calls of decolonial and feminist pedagogy. He has performed across the GTA and internationally and works across mediums of live performance, video, and photography. Mx. Quest Miranda EJ. Warner is a genderqueer, mixed-race, Indo-Guyanese activist and artist of many disciplines. They are the driving force behind queer clown collective #ClownsKillEmpires, as well as a member of Les Femmes Fatales Women of Colour Burlesque. A regular fixture in drag (as Sydney Quest) and burlesque (as Imogen Quest) scenes worldwide, they have spent the pandemic taking #ClownsKillEmpires online, to showcase the most ridiculous QTBIPOC digital art they can find. Bijuriya Bijuriya is a drag queen living in Montreal/Tiohtiake, Canada. She's half Indo-Caribbean and half-Québécoise. On-stage Bjiuriya is a dazzling thunderbolt of energy and quirkiness. Bijuriya is inspired by her South Asian culture and appreciated for her proud, festive and humorous outlook on Bollywood and all things Desi! With a background as a musician and interdisciplinary artist, she is currently creating a theatrical solo show to be premiered at Montréal Arts Interculturels in March 2022. Sundari the Indian Goddess Under the stage names Sundari the Indian Goddess and International Dancer Zaman, Mohamed Afzal Amin, a native of Guyana, has over 15 years of award-winning experiences as a performer. Both as Zaman and as Sundari, Amin draws on his training in Bollywood, chutney, and multiple Caribbean and classical Indian dance styles to promote Indo-Caribbean arts and culture and the multiple, intersectional identities of LGBTQ+ Caribbean immigrants in the diaspora. Zaman is one of the founding members and the lead choreographer of the Taranng Dance Troupe (Waves of the Future), a group of diversely trained dancers amplifying visibility and unity within the Caribbean performing arts community in the New York metropolitan tri-state area. And, as an LGBTQ+ rights activist and artist, he has pioneered several historic initiatives leading to queer and drag-centric performance pieces in faith-based institutions and at religious and cultural parades and festivals under both of his ionic personalities. In 2021, Amin bridged the skills, expertise and wisdom of his performer personalities into Zamandari, a consultancy, mentorship and community engagement platform to support new and up and coming Caribbean artists and connect the public with training, volunteer, and community support opportunities.

We continue our conversation with our guest Karimah Rahman, exploring growing up anglo and Muslim Indo-Caribbean in francophone Quebec and life settling in other parts of Canada. Karimah (she/her) is the founder of The Muslim Indo-Caribbean Collective (MICC @muslimindocaribbeancollective) and The Muslim Indentureship Studies Center (MISC- @muslimindenturestudiescenter). She is currently pursuing her PhD in Policy Studies focused on the intersectional marginalization, lack of representation and Anti-Muslim Racism towards Muslim Indo-Caribbeans (and marginalization of Indo-Caribbeans) in policy (India's Diaspora Policy and Ontario's South Asian Heritage Act, 2001) as well as Indo-Caribbean, Indentured Diasporic, Indian and South Asian spaces. She has coined a few terms: • The South Asian/Indian "Authenticity/Purity" Hierarchy Theory • The Indian(Indentured/Indo-Caribbean)“Authenticity/Purity” Hierarchy Theory • Mainland South Asian/Indian Supremacy • Mainland South Asian/Indian Privilege • Hindu Indian/Indenture/Indo-Caribbean Supremacy • Hindu Indian/Indenture/Indo-Caribbean Privilege to unpack this along with popularizing the term Muslim Indo-Caribbean and coining the terms: • Muslim Indo-Caribbean Heritage Day • Muslim Indo-Caribbean Studies • Muslim Indentureship Studies, • (Radical) Muslim Indo-Caribbean Feminism • (Radical) Muslim Indentured Diasporic Feminism. Karimah looks at the legacy of Muslim Indo-Caribbean resistance to colonization, journey of learning/unlearning, intergenerational trauma (rooted in Indentureship, colonization, white supremacy, Hindu supremacy, Hindutva ideology, Brahmin supremacy etc.) and decolonizing (including Decolonizing Mental Health). Karimah is a published author with work ranging from academic to spoken words, she gave talks, interviews and workshops on the topics mentioned earlier. She is currently working on a documentary movie and upcoming book on Being Muslim Indo-Caribbean made by Muslim Indo-Caribbeans for Muslim Indo-Caribbeans. @DiasporicChildrenofIndenture Karimah - @karimah__kr Muslim Indo-Caribbean Collective - @muslimindocaribbeancollective Podcast Music: "A Break in the Clouds" by PNFA (2010)

In this episode with our guest Karimah Rahman, we explore the intersections of la francophonie and indenture by discussing growing up anglo and Muslim Indo-Caribbean in francophone Quebec, as well as settling in other parts of Canada. Karimah (she/her) is the founder of The Muslim Indo-Caribbean Collective (MICC @muslimindocaribbeancollective) and The Muslim Indentureship Studies Center (MISC- @muslimindenturestudiescenter). She is currently pursuing her PhD in Policy Studies focused on the intersectional marginalization, lack of representation and Anti-Muslim Racism towards Muslim Indo-Caribbeans (and marginalization of Indo-Caribbeans) in policy (India's Diaspora Policy and Ontario's 2001 South Asian Heritage Act) as well as Indo-Caribbean, Indentured Diasporic, Indian and South Asian spaces. She has coined a few terms: • The South Asian/Indian "Authenticity/Purity" Hierarchy Theory • The Indian(Indentured/Indo-Caribbean)“Authenticity/Purity” Hierarchy Theory • Mainland South Asian/Indian Supremacy • Mainland South Asian/Indian Privilege • Hindu Indian/Indenture/Indo-Caribbean Supremacy • Hindu Indian/Indenture/Indo-Caribbean Privilege to unpack this along with popularizing the term Muslim Indo-Caribbean and coining the terms: • Muslim Indo-Caribbean Heritage Day • Muslim Indo-Caribbean Studies • Muslim Indentureship Studies, • (Radical) Muslim Indo-Caribbean Feminism • (Radical) Muslim Indentured Diasporic Feminism. Karimah looks at the legacy of Muslim Indo-Caribbean resistance to colonization, journey of learning/unlearning, intergenerational trauma (rooted in Indentureship, colonization, white supremacy, Hindu supremacy, Hindutva ideology, Brahmin supremacy etc.) and decolonizing (including Decolonizing Mental Health). Karimah is a published author with work ranging from academic to spoken words, she gave talks, interviews and workshops on the topics mentioned earlier. She is currently working on a documentary movie and upcoming book on Being Muslim Indo-Caribbean made by Muslim Indo-Caribbeans for Muslim Indo-Caribbeans. @DiasporicChildrenofIndenture Karimah - @karimah__kr Muslim Indo-Caribbean Collective - @muslimindocaribbeancollective Podcast Music: "A Break in the Clouds" by PNFA (2010)

In this episode Shabnum is joined by Juanita Dudhnath of Brown Girl Magazine as both of them talk through the dark history of indentured servitude that led to Indian migration to the Caribbean, and how four to five generations onward the culture of Indo-Caribbean people has evolved. Juanita explains the term "Coolie," and how it can have both familiar and negative connotations, and she explains the hyphenated identity that Indo-Caribbeans have uniquely lived with for generations when the world is just now starting to normalize a hyphenated identity. We also talked a bit about the perception problem of other South Asian Americans not seeing Indo-Caribbeans as our own, and how the world is changing to enable more of these conversations to be had in order to drive changes in thinking. Host: Shabnum GulatiGuest: Juanita Dudhnath Art: Chelsi Bhagan (@island.childd) on Instagram Music: AnAkkiN on SoundCloud 

Episode Notes Dr. Sarika Persaud (@doctor.samosa) is a student of Abha Bhatnagar Roy, and assists with teaching at Srijan Dance Center (NYC). She is a psychologist at Fordham University (Lincoln Center), and an adjunct professor at City University of New York - John Jay College. Sarika's research and clinical work focuses on relationship, sex, and body image issues for the South Asian diaspora, youth suicide prevention, and mental healthcare for artists. Sarika identifies as a bisexual Indo-Caribbean woman, and was recently published in an anthology of South Asian LGBTQAI+ essays, “I Hope You'll Still Love Me.” She has also published a collection of poetry, “Poems About a Song,” in addition to various academic publications on community-based interventions for South Asian diaspora groups in the International Journal of Psychology, School Psychology International, and in a forthcoming book published by the American Psychological Association, Division of South Asian-American Psychology. https://www.instagram.com/kathaksamosa/ https://www.instagram.com/doctor.samosa/ https://www.instagram.com/srijandance/ Show Highlights (0:02:00) Being Indo-Carribean (0:11:31) Significance of Rangmanch (0:13:36) What causes people to quit kathak (0:14:40) Rangmanch (0:16:13) music in indocarribean (0:18:22) Mental Health Practice around dance (0:20:04) Common issues faced by dancers (0:22:09) From surface to deeper issues (0:25:17) how is therapy different for dancers (0:27:26) Red flags for dancers to watch out (0:31:36) The concept of giving space (0:34:36) How stopping things helps you shape your identity (0:35:48) What to focus on when teaching children (0:37:03) Ashtamangal Taal (0:37:30) Foundations of kathak (0:42:28) Separating Psychology from Life (0:45:25) Srijan dance enter (0:48:44) Relationship between Sarika di and Abha Bhatnagar ji (0:53:32) How do dancers perceive choreographies (0:56:58) Getting to love Riyaz (1:00:50) Kathak Meetup NYC (1:02:33) Love for Tagore

Bringing our Caribbean History to life! here to teach you things the school books won't, from our indigenous people, our Indo-Caribbean culture, African heritage and so much more. Our history is beautiful and dynamic and far from boring...So get to know yourself through Know Your Caribbean Our GDPR privacy policy was updated on August 8, 2022. Visit acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Caribbean is made up of a number of ethnic groups, mostly as a result of colonialism between the 18th and 20th centuries. To commemorate Indian Arrival Day throughout the Caribbean, this week's episode discusses the roots of Indian indentureship with doctoral student Cristine Khan and how connecting these histories is integral to Caribbean connections moving forward.  Cristine Khan is a Ph.D. student in Sociology at the CUNY Graduate Center where she works at the Teaching and Learning Center and also teaches at Hunter College and Queens College. With experience as a critical educator and researcher in Latin America and Europe, she currently conducts research on intergenerational Indo-Caribbean identity formations and racialization processes in New York City. She was born and raised in New York City to Guyanese parents, which has shaped her trajectory as a researcher and educator.Connect with Strictly Facts -  Instagram | Facebook | TwitterLooking  to read more about the topics covered in this episode? Subscribe to the newsletter at www.strictlyfactspod.com to get the Strictly Facts Syllabus to your email!Produced by Breadfruit Media

Religion is an integral part of Caribbean history and culture, some of which were introduced as a result of colonization and enslavement and others that are syncretic religions, or made up of a combination of religions. In this episode, Dr. Aliyah Khan and I discuss a handful of Caribbean religions, the influence of music and culture, and her recent book, Far from Mecca: Globalizing the Muslim Caribbean, that charts the growth of Islam in the Caribbean from both the Afro- and Indo-Caribbean experience. Dr. Aliyah Khan, a native of Guyana, is Associate Professor of English Language and Literature, and Afroamerican and African Studies, at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor.  Dr. Khan holds a Ph.D. in Literature and Feminist Studies from the University of California, Santa Cruz, and an M.F.A. in Creative Writing--Fiction from Hunter College of the City University of New York. Her research areas are Caribbean literature and Islamic literature, with emphases on race, gender, and sexuality. Dr. Khan is the author of Far from Mecca: Globalizing the Muslim Caribbean (Rutgers University Press 2020), the first academic book on the history, literature, and music of Black and South Asian Muslims in the Caribbean. Her writing also appears in scholarly and popular venues including GLQ, Caribbean Review of Gender Studies, The Rumpus, Agents of Ishq, and Pree: Caribbean Writing. Dr. Khan is currently conducting research for a book on Caribbean hurricanes, the ship routes of the transatlantic slave trade, and their implications for contemporary migration within the Americas.Connect with Strictly Facts -  Instagram | Facebook | TwitterLooking to read more about the topics covered in this episode? Subscribe to www.strictlyfactspod.com/ to get the Strictly Facts Syllabus to your email!Produced by Breadfruit Media

Sean Uendra Moonsammy, M.M., M.A., CF-SLP, TSSLD is a Guyanese American, Indo-Caribbean, son of immigrants, first generation, opera singer and speech-language pathologist. He graduated from CUNY Queens College with his BM and MM in opera performance, as well as his MA in speech-language pathology in 2020. He is completing his clinical fellowship as an acute care and outpatient healthcare provider at Stony Brook University Hospital where he specializes in voice & upper airway disorders, and dysphagia. He is a mentor for ASHA's S.T.E.P. Program and is currently starting a gender-affirmation clinic in Suffolk county with colleagues Dr. Keith Chadwick and Allison Aaron. Before starting his career as an SLP, Sean has performed alongside Elton John, performed on The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon, and accompanied Josh Groban as a backup singer on two national tours.⁣ In this interview, we discuss:The intersection of opera, voice, and SLPHow Sean's identities influence his perspectiveThe importance of diversity and cultural responsiveness,Internalized racismAdvice for people interested in the fieldAnd more!Sean's Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/seanny55/Jordyn's Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jrc_theslp/Watch interview clips on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCoqKLAGVOYl-zXJpDqB1DSQShop diverse materials, helpful handouts, and apparel with a message here: https://www.jrctheslp.com/shop

SHOWNOTES FOR EPISODE 37:Pravini's website and instagramThe Uprising full film on YouTubeBooks and other things we discussed:Jhumpa Lahiri's The NamesakeIndian Matchmaking on NetflixFollow us on Instagram for more on Pravini and everything we mentioned in this episode!Special thanks to Varun Dhabe, Aman Moroney and the team @ Flying Carpet Productions for audio post-production engineering!