Bangladeshi diaspora will play a larger role in US elections
There is an especially strong South Asian focus in the coming US elections. Not just because the Vice Presidential candidate Kamala Harris has an Indian heritage, but also because South Asians of all stripes have the potential to swing the election -- especially true in key battleground states such as Texas and Michigan.
Bangladeshis form a significant portion of the South Asian vote, a grouping that includes those from India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Nepal. This segment grew by 43% between 2011 and 2018, according to the American community survey, and now comprises nearly 5.7 million people. The total American population in the meantime increased by only five percent.
Indians in particular now number almost two million people and form the second largest immigrant grouping in the country. They also have the highest average incomes, at around hundred thousand dollars per annum.
Bangladeshis consist of a combination of professional and working class. Their average income is approximately sixty thousand dollars yearly each, which is still above the American average. A greater proportion of Bangladeshis voted for Democrats in the last election -- approximately ninety percent. Pakistanis vote along similar lines, unlike Indians, from whom over twenty percent voted for Trump.
The religious divide of the subcontinent is a feature of the South Asian vote in America. Blockbuster events such as Howdy Modi in Texas, which drew tens of thousands of local Indians, also had an air of Hindu nationalism. As a result, those Indians who had any suspicions towards Muslims were drawn to Trump's tough line against immigration from Muslim-majority countries.
Indian Americans have slightly higher English proficiency levels, which can lead to higher voter turnout at 89%, which is quite critical in American elections. By contrast, Pakistani and Bangladeshi Americans turn out at marginally reduced rates, at 86% and 83% among registered voters respectively.
Fatema Haque is the founder of a Michigan non-profit organization, Rising Voices of Asian American Families. She says not being able to read a ballot in Bengali can dissuade Bangladeshis from participating.
"Most folks are working-class," she told the Guardian, referring to Bangladeshi communities in the Detroit and Hamtramck areas. The region splitting the two cities is referred to as "Banglatown" because it's home to one of the largest Bangladeshi populations in the US. "For many years (in Michigan), there wasn't a ballot in Bengali."
Other groups such as Bangladeshi-Americans for Political Progress have been formed in recent years to mobilise the community as a potential voting bloc. New York based Facebook group TBN24 advertise themselves as an outlet for the world's non-resident Bangladeshis and are running educational videos about issues pertaining to the US elections in both Bangla and English.
An interesting trend that can be observed in both Britain and Australia is that some Bangladeshis start voting for conservative parties as a marker of their success and integration. I distinctly remember a friend of my father's who proudly proclaimed his support for the Liberal Party in Australia, which is the conservative opponent of the more left wing Australian Labour Party. He ran a business and smoked Cuban cigars too. He was one of the very few Bangladeshis I remember while growing up in Sydney that ever boasted about voting against the Labour Party.
This has since changed as more Bangladeshis run businesses and also rise up the social and economic ranks. I myself have represented the conservative party at municipal level in part because their social conservatism overlapped with views about family values common amongst Bangladeshis. Many Bangladeshis who have lived in the West for several decades also develop stricter views about excessive immigration.
Don't discount these trends in the US election with more Bangladeshis likely to be shy Trump voters. Take for example a Buet trained computer scientist who worked at Wall Street. He told the Dhaka Tribune that he planned to support Trump but also wished to remain anonymous. "I am not offended by his concern about Muslims: there is a problem even in our country. What is wrong with careful screening?" he said.
But anger against Trump is also very strong.
While previously it was related to his tough talk against Muslims and immigration, a tactic many Bangladeshis blame for possible hate crimes in New York City, his failures at minimising the effects of coronavirus are now paramount. Bangladeshis were among the worst hit ethnic groups when New York City was the global epicentre of virus deaths, with the Bangladeshi dominated area of Jackson Heights one of the most affected.
The irony is that many of Trump's policies may have helped Bangladesh. His tough talk and tariffs upon Chinese products have driven demand for Bangladeshi garments, although the economic effects of coronavirus has dampened such benefits. Trump has also expressed an interest to Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina in helping with the plight of the Rohingya refugees.
Bangladeshi-Americans will be more important than ever before in the coming Presidential election. Many people have quipped over the years we should all get a vote in the American election because the country's politics and resulting foreign policy affect the entire world. As a result, this election's result and associated mobilisation of South Asians will hold unprecedented significance for all Bangladeshis, resident and non-resident.
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