World

Twitter hashtag to fight racial attacks in US

Published

9 years ago

September 12, 2015

New York: An Indian American woman has created #AfterSeptember11 on micro-blogging site Twitter to speak up against the racial attacks Indians have been facing in the US after the September 11 terror attacks.

The hashtag was created by Jessica Talwar, a 19-year-old political science student from Loyola University in Chicago who tweets as @jesstalwar, the Los Angeles Times reported on Friday.

The #AfterSeptember11 began trending since September 10 night — the day it was created — with over 50,000 victims telling their stories using it.

The victims said they were targeted for being Muslim – or often, just for having brown skin.

Many of the victims were children during the attacks on the Trade Towers but their tweets reflect the impact of the racial abuse on their young lives.

One said her father shaved his face and stopped wearing a turban after he was assaulted at work.

“America needs to recognise that the trauma and repercussions of these attacks were not confined to the day of September 11, 2001 itself,” Talwar wrote in an email to Los Angeles Times.

“Desis, Arabs, and Muslims have felt the impact of this day for 14 years,” she said.

Indian American poet Hari Kondabolu echoed Talwar’s views and wrote “his mother put the US flag on their house because she feared that people would throw rocks through the window”.

On September 8 night, an elderly Sikh-American man Inderjit Singh Mukker, was attacked in Chicago and was dubbed a “terrorist” and “bin Laden” by the attacker.

Soon after its creation, the detractors used the hashtag to flood hate messages. They used racial slurs and threatened to kill Muslims.

“It was as if there was some rigid dichotomy between American society and the South Asian, Muslim, and Arab communities,” Talwar was quoted as saying.

“This movement was not intended to belittle the tragic events of September 11 itself,” she said.

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Foodman Vishal Singh Honored for Hunger Free World Mission in Bangkok

Published

2 days ago

September 19, 2024

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Lucknow: Vishal Singh, a renowned social worker from Lucknow, also known as Foodman, has once again made India proud. He was honored by the Happy Hands Gloves Cooperative Limited Company in Korathai, Thailand, for his work with the Hunger Free World Mission.

The Hunger Free World Mission’s meeting was held in Korathai, Thailand, under Vishal Singh’s leadership. Representatives from several countries, including Mr. Raja Dwivedi (Managing Director of Happy Hands Gloves Limited), Thailand Coordinator Mr. Raja Mishra, and member Mr. Varun Singh, attended the event.

Under Vishal Singh’s leadership, the attendees took a pledge to work together toward creating a hunger-free world.

Speaking on the occasion, Vishal Singh explained that the main goal of the Hunger Free World Mission is social participation. He said the mission is not just about feeding people but also about meeting other basic needs of those who are struggling. The mission focuses on helping families of terminally ill patients in hospitals by providing food and shelter. It also works to fulfill essential needs like education, jobs, and care for the elderly.

For the last 16 years, the Vijay Sri Foundation has been providing free services, benefiting thousands of people. Vishal Singh highlighted that the mission aims to gain global recognition like other organizations such as WHO, WWF, and Red Cross, which work for social causes.

During this meeting, Vishal Singh was appointed as the Chairman of the Hunger Free World Mission by representatives from various countries. They also discussed holding regular meetings in different countries to push the mission forward.

Business tycoon Dr. Abhishek Verma has also supported this humanitarian mission, vowing to promote the idea of “Seva Parmo Dharma” (Service is the highest duty) worldwide. Vishal Singh praised him, stating that people like Dr .Abhishek Verma inspire others to work for the betterment of society.

Recently, Romania’s Ambassador, Mr . Daniela Sezonov Ţane, invited Vishal Singh to the Romanian Embassy in Delhi, where they discussed the mission in detail. Impressed by his humanitarian work, she honored Vishal Singh and invited him to Romania to take the mission forward .

Food man Vishal Singh has been serving the people of India for the past 16 years. Through the Vijay Sri Foundation, he provides free meals to cancer patients & their families ,shelter, and education for women & children along with running free old-age homes in Lucknow.

In addition to his humanitarian work, Vishal Singh also addresses issues like crime and corruption through his role as Chairman of Seva Path Media and Managing Director of Vijay Sri Foundation.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Vishal Singh and his team worked tirelessly to provide food and help to the needy, including starving children, elderly citizens, and pregnant women. Despite contracting the virus himself, he continued to assist others after his recovery. He even created a life-saving oxygen regulator using household items, which was praised by doctors both in India and abroad.

In his address at the meeting, Vishal Singh spoke about his mission to create a hunger-free world. He pointed out that India’s large population, along with issues like unemployment and poverty, has caused the country to fall on the Hunger Index. He urged people to contribute just one handful of grains daily to help create a hunger-free world.

He concluded by saying that through social participation, we can empower the people around us, meet their basic needs, and work together to build a stronger, more prosperous, and developed society.