The 7 Eleven clerks, cab drivers, doctors, hotdog cart guys, engineers, internet CEOs, web designers, business people, fashion designers, film directors, politicians, lawyers, handymen, pilots, police, maids, etc. The Indians, Pakistanis, Saudis, Libyans, Iraqis, Palestinians, Egyptians, Nepalese, Turkish, Kuwaitis, Burmese, Syrians, Lebanese, Yemenis, Afghanis, etc. We didn't do it. I'm on vacation, in a less populated, less diverse place than I live in. As I drive past strip malls, beer barns, and gas stations, the unity of the country is awe-inspiring.
Flags hang from every edifice.
Signs declare the citizen's solidarity. I have this emotion of being part of a great, waking giant. Unfortunately, there is a tension around this emotion, in that I feel I'm getting marginalized, and most more disturbingly, scrutinized. I love being Indian, and having a storied heritage, but for the first time in my life, I want to crawl out of my skin. Living in a big city numbs you to the ignorance that can prevail in times like this.