Defining Diversity

I’ve had wonderful opportunities to serve at a variety of Embassies and Consulates during my career, but one thing I’ve sacrificed is time at home in the U.S.  I haven’t lived in my own country since 1998.  I visit regularly, and in fact the State Department requires that diplomats spend at least a month on holiday in the U.S. between assignments, but because I’m not there on a day-to-day basis, changes in public attitudes and public mood that occur gradually may be more evident to me than they would be if I lived at home.  Some changes are likely temporary—like the current polarization of our political space, or the sense of insecurity and pessimism caused by the current economic slowdown.  But others are clearly fundamental, long-term trends, such as the incredible growth of visibility and influence of Indian Americans, or the reduced tolerance for cigarette smoking. 

  

Looking back through U.S. history, one clear, long-term trend is our increasing acceptance of diversity, and with it the extension of equal rights and protections.  Our founding fathers in the U.S. Declaration of Independence said “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.”  Americans are proud of this philosophical legacy, but we also recognize that we did not, in fact, provide all men with equal rights for most of our history.  The Constitution of the U.S. acknowledged slavery by apportioning representatives to the states through a formula that added to the number of “free Persons” another number representing three-fifths of “all other Persons.”  It was only in 1866 that the sixteenth amendment to the Constitution provided equal protections to African American men, and only in 1920 that the nineteenth amendment extended constitutional protection to women.  It took almost a century after the sixteenth amendment for the Civil Rights Act of 1964 to outlaw discrimination on the basis of race, color, national origin, religion or sex.  When John F. Kennedy ran for office in 1960, the election of a Catholic was considered revolutionary, just as President Obama’s election was a watershed moment for racial equality. 

This trend of broadening U.S. legal protections and social acceptance continues to this day.  Since the Civil Rights Act was signed, we have enacted legislation prohibiting discrimination on the basis of disability, age, and, most recently, genetic information.  An area of focus today involves gay rights.  The U.S. has not yet enacted legislation specifically prohibiting discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation, but President Clinton signed an executive order in 1998 banning discrimination in federal employment, and many states have broader protections, including recognition of same-sex marriage.  The Consulate recently sponsored a Rainbow Film Festival to celebrate LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender) pride month.  The four films screened included documentaries and docudramas; all were based on true stories, highlighting the history of the gay rights movement in the U.S.  One of the things that they made clear was that America’s acceptance of homosexuality is relatively recent and remains incomplete.  In 1969, when the raid that is featured in the film “Stonewall Uprising” occurred, homosexual conduct was illegal in most of the U.S.  Today, a majority of Americans favor permitting same sex marriage.  Demonstrating how far we have come, on the occasion of Human Rights Day last year, President Obama and Secretary Clinton announced that promoting acceptance of gay rights around the world would be a cornerstone of U.S. foreign policy.

A 2007 global attitude survey (http://pewglobal.org/files/pdf/258.pdf) asked people: “Should homosexuality be accepted by society?”  80 percent or more of citizens in most European countries said yes, and 49 percent of Americans said homosexuality should be socially accepted.  South Asia, the Middle East and Africa had the lowest acceptance levels, with India at only 10 percent.  In this context, it’s not surprising that some groups here in Hyderabad opposed the showing of films about the gay rights struggle in the U.S.  Fortunately, we were able to go forward despite efforts to force a cancellation.  The Consulate is respectful of those who hold different views, and will seek to avoid confrontations.  But we will continue to treat LGBT issues as a human rights issue and engage actively to build respect for the rights of LGBT persons, and to show solidarity for those suffering from stigma and discrimination. 

Thoughts about Undergraduate Education

I’ve written about students and opportunities for undergraduate study in the U.S. before, but the subject has been on my mind again lately, in part because this is “back to school” season here in Hyderabad and also because it’s peak student visa season at the Consulate.  In the next  six months, we hope to establish an office of the U.S.-India Educational Foundation (USIEF) at the Consulate which will focus its efforts on helping students in Andhra Pradesh to find appropriate educational programs in the U.S.   I’m hopeful that USIEF’s efforts will mean that at this time next year, we’ll have even more demand for visas for students to pursue undergraduate education in the U.S.—and much higher rates of visa approval for these students, who will have well-considered educational plans.

The other day I read an article about the grueling schedules secondary school students endure in India as they prepare to compete for the critical exams that will determine their university placement.  The journalist reported that it’s not uncommon for students to study 12 or more hours a day, six days a week, and often sacrifice other interests, including sports, social interaction and cultural activities, because they just don’t have time. 

It struck me how different that stress is from the pressures facing American high school students who want admission to the top universities in the U.S.   They enhance their prospects by putting more time onto extracurricular activities, like sports, fine arts, and volunteering in the community.

For Indian students, results in examinations that test knowledge seem to be the dominant factor in university admissions.  For American students, the picture is more complicated.  Colleges and universities make an initial, quantitative assessment of candidates by looking at a combination of grades in high school and results in examinations that test literacy and analytical skills.  On that basis, they narrow their pools of applicants, but final decisions only come after they look at a variety of other factors, including references, essays, interviews, and records of extracurricular activities.  Of course, students who completely neglect studying will have poor grades in high school, and some studying may be useful to prepare for the SAT exam.  But a bright, motivated student can excel on both without putting in anything like the number of hours that Indian students spend absorbing the vast body of knowledge that they will be tested on. 

When I was in high school in the U.S. in the 1970s, sports was by far the most important extracurricular activity that could help a high school student gain admission to a competitive university, but today the focus is wider.  Participation in fine or performing arts is a plus, as is a record of leadership.  At selective schools, there is increasing preference for students who have demonstrated a sense of social responsibility by participating in volunteer activities.  And references, essays and interviews have real weight in the process.  American universities are looking for future leaders, innovators, and communicators, not just those who will excel in academics, and they use all these indicators to help identify the most promising applicants.

The big difference between the criteria students in India are familiar with and the way the American system works may be intimidating for Indian students thinking about pursuing undergraduate education in the U.S.  The other big barrier is the high cost of U.S. universities.  As a result, many students look for help and advice on where to apply.  The U.S. government has a student advising service called Education USA.  Education USA throughout India works through the U.S.-India Educational Foundation, which is jointly sponsored by the U.S. and Indian governments, and provides free advice and resources for prospective students.  Their website is:  USIEF.org.in.  They also have a toll-free student advising telephone number 1-800-103-1231.  We’ve found, however, that many students don’t know about the services of USIEF and Education USA, and instead they turn to many other educational consultants.  Some of these consultants may be knowledgeable and effective, but many of them have a conflict of interest because they accept funds from universities when they steer students in their direction.  Some also provide poor advice, and encourage students to misrepresent their circumstances during visa interviews.  I’m pleased that we will be opening an office of USIEF at the Consulate in the coming months.  USIEF will help students find the schools that best meets their objectives and will be able to help students understand the process of applying for financial aid.

I hope that Indian students will also become more aware in the future about some of the special opportunities that exist in the U.S., for example, for female student athletes.  The U.S. may be unique in the value that universities place on participation in sports.  Critics accuse some of the biggest universities in the U.S. of exploiting athletes by enrolling those who excel in high-profile sports like basketball and football as students despite the fact that their grades and test scores suggest they have little potential to meet normal academic standards.  For those who use college as a springboard to become professional athletes, the system works; for unqualified students and those who can’t take advantage of educational opportunities and who don’t make it to the next level, the accusation of exploitation is difficult to refute.  But there are others who benefit from this.  U.S. legislation requires that colleges provide young women as many athletic scholarships as they provide to young men.  As a result, universities maintain women’s teams and provide financial support to girls who combine academic and athletic achievements.  When I was in Zimbabwe, I was pleased to see that a number of Zimbabwean girls received scholarships to study in the U.S. while playing field hockey.  These young women have a chance to participate in sports, but they also get a quality education, and I hope more Indian girls will also take advantage of this scholarship opportunity.  

Don't be a litterbug!

Earth Day raises awareness about a whole range of issues, from climate change at the global level to littering at the local level.  Littering might seem a lot more trivial than climate change, but I think addressing both is partly a matter of changing the daily habits of millions of people.  I’ve been thinking a little about the environment at various levels, and how the issues are similar and how they’re different.

I’ve mentioned before in this blog that, as much as I love living in India, one of the things I find hard to tolerate is the presence of trash all over the place. Twice in recent weeks friends of mine have lamented about garbage in their neighborhoods.  In both cases, my friends told me government trash pickup is not regular so residents dump on vacant land.  In each case, an independent contractor had been identified to pick up the trash for a modest fee.  But the residents of these wealthy neighborhoods were not interested in paying for the service. 

Figuring out how to address garbage in the streets depends in part on why it happens.  When I studied economics, we talked about something called a “free rider” problem.  The free rider problem explains why people might continue littering even if they really would prefer to live in a clean city—and would be willing to pay the cost to have a clean environment.  (The cost of keeping the street clean would be money in the case of a trash collection fee or just the effort to dispose of garbage properly in the case of general littering.)  The problem is, if I pay but others don’t, I’ve paid for nothing, since the environment will still be dirty.  If 90% of us bear the cost but the other 10% don’t, we’ll have a relatively clean environment—and those 10% who continue littering will be getting a free ride.  As more and more people look to get a free ride, the environment gets dirtier and dirtier.  Why should I pay if I don’t think others will? 

In economics, the free rider problem is one of the justifications for government action.  In the example of neighborhood trash pickup, assuming we value a clean environment, if we had a neighborhood association that had the authority to collect mandatory fees, we could all vote to be billed by the association to pay the contractor.  We’d all be happy to pay since there would be no free riders.  In the case of littering more broadly, if we all valued clean streets, we might vote for politicians who campaigned on a pledge to crack down on littering. 

This example, though, shows why government action isn’t the only answer, and may not be effective all by its self.  What if people don’t value a clean environment?  Then they won’t vote for politicians who say they’ll raise rates to pay for trash pickup or pledge a crackdown on littering, and nothing will be done.  It’s also harder to solve the problem the broader it is.  It’s fairly easy to see government action as a solution if people value cleanliness and trash in the streets is mostly a matter of households dumping their garbage.  An effective trash collection service funded by the government based on rates collected by households could work and satisfy everyone.  But if casual littering is a big part of the problem, stricter government laws on littering would be much harder to enforce.   (Imagine the manpower and paperwork it would take if everyone who littered in Hyderabad today was ticketed and fined!) 

What are some alternatives or accompaniments to government action?  A starting point is public education that increases the value people place on hygiene and a clean environment.  For example, a public outreach campaign could explain that widespread garbage encourages rodent infestation and mosquito breeding, both of which increase disease prevalence and childhood mortality.  That might make people care.  Sometimes public education can contribute to other forms of “coercion” that substitute for government action.   In the U.S. littering has declined dramatically during my lifetime largely because of public outreach campaigns. In most places in the U.S. today, laws against littering are pretty much irrelevant, since the social pressure to dispose of trash properly is so strong.  Campaigns focused on children, who were urged: “Don’t be a litterbug!”  Today, a schoolchild who dropped his food wrapper on the playground would be severely criticized by his peers, a penalty much more effective than a teacher’s rebuke.  Social pressure has also made the wearing of fur pretty much socially unacceptable in the U.S. because of concern about abuses in some fur trapping practices—even though the trapping of wild animals only affected a few types of fur, and there is no similar social taboo associated with leather.

The issues associated with global climate change are much more complicated.  For starters, there is no global authority that can assure compliance by all in any scheme.  But one thing that is the same is that a solution will impose costs on everyone, and that will only be sustainable if there is popular consensus about the value of a reduction in greenhouse gases.  Achieving that is complicated by the fact that the benefits of action will accrue largely to future generations.  But the importance of public education is the same for climate change as it is for littering.  The potential for leveraging social pressures is evident in the proliferation of marketing campaigns for “green” products.  In the U.S., we are still fairly far from a real popular consensus on policies to combat climate change.  But I think grassroots trends and increasing popular interest suggest that we can make up ground quickly and reach a point soon when we’re willing to change old habits. 

I’m also hopeful that Hyderabad will soon embrace a new commitment to cleaner streets.

Voting Across Borders

Click here for video message by CG Dhanani

Indian and American citizens share certain democratic rights, and we also share the fundamental democratic responsibility to vote.  With U.S. elections coming up this year, I’ve been giving some thought to voting.  By that, I don’t mean thinking about whether or not I’ll vote (I will), but more general issues like voting participation rates and absentee voting.  

In the U.S., absentee voting has long been an accepted practice, largely through postal votes, although some states are experimenting with policies to encourage voting by creating more options that don’t require a voter to show up at a given place on a given day.  I know absentee voting isn’t accepted everywhere.  In my last country of assignment, Zimbabwe, the issue was a very heated one.  Many Zimbabweans left the country because of political repression, so naturally the opposition strongly favored allowing Zimbabweans in the diaspora to vote.  The ruling party adamantly opposed it.  In some countries, however, efforts to facilitate voting for citizens living overseas are much more direct than those of the U.S.  In my second last country of assignment, Gabon, I witnessed French citizens lining up in their embassy to cast ballots in French elections.  I can just imagine the logistical challenge we would face if thousands of Americans resident in Andhra Pradesh came to the Consulate in Hyderabad on November 6 to exercise their constitutional rights!

I was interested to see that India’s voter participation rates are quite similar to rates in U.S. presidential elections—and we’re both at the bottom end of a list of major democracies on voting rates, according to Wikipedia: Voter turnout - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The same article shows a surprising difference between the U.S. and India in the breakdown of voting rates according to socio-economic status.  In the U.S., voting rates rise as the level of education rises, while in India, those with college educations vote less than those without, and those who have studied at a post-graduate level have the lowest rates of all.  I’m not sure data from just one election really says very much—but it’s interesting in any case.

In the U.S., we have national elections every two years, but only hold presidential elections every four years.  (All seats in the House of Representatives and a third of Senate seats are up for election every two years.) Rates of voter participation are sharply higher in presidential election years, rising from roughly 37 percent of the voting age population to over 57 percent.  Rates of voter participation have been increasing in the U.S. since 1996, and the 2008 election reportedly had the highest eligible voter participation rate since 1960. 

It will be interesting to see whether that trend to higher voting rates continues in 2012.  I hope so.  Reported U.S. public dissatisfaction with government, which I discussed in a blog post last year, should motivate citizens to do their part to make government respond to their needs.  If we don’t fulfill our civic responsibility, we have only ourselves to blame if those elected don’t reflect our views. 

As government employees, my colleagues and I are subject to strict restrictions on partisan political activities, but we are fully authorized and personally energized to encourage our fellow citizens to participate in our political process.  We had an in-house session on absentee voting for Americans working at the Consulate the other day, and I was pleased to see how interested my colleagues were in the subject.  For Americans interested in absentee voting from India, there’s information on our consulate website http://hyderabad.usconsulate.gov/, but all you really need to know is at another site: Federal Voting Assistance Program. One important point to note for American citizens: the Consulate is able to transmit your ballot through the U.S. mail for you.  (Even though voting is voluntary and filing tax returns is mandatory for Americans, we can only do this for voting, not for tax filing.)

Exploring Odisha's Heritage

I spent a week in and around Bhubaneswar from January 16 to the 20th with Ambassador Burleigh from the U.S. Embassy in New Delhi and several of my colleagues from the Consulate General in Hyderabad.  Odisha is the second state in Hyderabad’s consular district, but I’ve spent relatively little time there.  I’m resolved to make it a higher priority in the future, starting with a celebration of “America Days” in Bhubaneswar from February 1-3. 

Thanks to Ambassador Burleigh’s suggestions, the trip had a strong cultural component (in addition to some very interesting meetings and project site visits).  I particularly valued the opportunity to learn and experience more of India’s rich cultural heritage.  As a newcomer to India--and to the south Asia region as a whole-- I’ve had a steep learning curve to climb.  When I first heard about my assignment to Hyderabad, I asked friends and colleagues to recommend books I could read to prepare myself, and the list that resulted was daunting.  Playing to my strengths instead of addressing my weaknesses, I decided to start by learning about modern India, the country’s relatively recent history and contemporary development challenges.  Since I arrived in Hyderabad I’ve continued along the same lines; I’ve visited many more hospitals than temples.  I’m aware that spiritual beliefs and traditions play a very important role in modern India, but I’ve not yet greatly exposed myself to or educated myself about the ancient traditions that underlie the modern society.  My trip to Bhubaneswar was enlightening.

Our visit to the State Museum of Odisha drew my attention to one area of craftsmanship that links India’s past with its present: palm leaf engraving.  I had bought an engraving during the recent All-India Crafts Mela at Shilparamam, and I was very interested when I met the artisans who create these works of art during a January 17 stop at the Raghurajpur crafts village on the road to Puri.  Then we went to the State Museum and the curator showed us parts of the Museum’s amazing manuscript collection, including well-preserved and beautifully engraved illustrations and documents dating back more than 1000 years.  I was profoundly struck by the fact that the techniques used and many of the stories told by the creators of those ancient manuscripts were exactly the same as those of today’s artisans. 

Learning about and seeing the Jagannath temple in Puri showed me another strong connection between India’s past and present.  I had the honor of meeting the King of Puri, Dibyasingh Dev, and learning about the Ratha Yatra festival directly from him.  He explained that tribal communities discovered the deity and worshiped the god before he was discovered by Hindu priests.  The descendents of his early worshipers still serve him in the temple and are the only ones permitted in his presence during his period of retreat and convalescence before the festival.  Then we went to Puri and climbed to the roof of the library to look at the temple, since non-Hindus are not allowed to enter.  It was interesting to see the temple, but I found even more striking the view of the road leading to the temple, where even on an ordinary Wednesday, thousands of pilgrims were approaching to pay a visit and view Lord Jagannath, creating a moving mosaic of color.  The King had told us that the temple kitchens were (at least at one time) the largest in India, and feed tens of thousands of people every day, using only indigenous vegetables.  For me as an American, the fact that these traditions have been meticulously maintained for a thousand years is truly astonishing.

Our cultural odyssey also included the Sun Temple in Konark, the opening of a music festival at the Rajarani temple in Bhubaneswar, and a walk through a new botanical garden near the Lingaraja temple.  The importance of traditional spiritual values in modern daily life was also clear from the tulsi plants on raised platforms I saw near destroyed houses in flood-affected villages; it was evident that they were important parts of daily family life for villagers. 

It was good to go beyond my routine and expand my knowledge of India’s spiritual and cultural heritage last week.  I know that Andhra Pradesh also offers a multitude of cultural opportunities, and I hope to continue my education in the months to come.

Taking My Online Connections Offline

At the Consulate's Social Media Launch conducted in association with Facebook India and GVK One

I want to thank everyone who came out to participate in the launch of the Consulate’s Social Media activities.  I was amazed by the interest and enthusiasm of the crowd there.  It was great to meet people who are interested in engaging with us.  I really appreciated the GVK One Mall’s hosting the event—it was a great setting, and especially good that cricket fans didn’t have to choose between our event and watching the World Cup. 

That Sachin Tendulkar reached his century during the ceremony only added to the excitement level at the Mall.  It was also an honor to share the platform with Kirthiga Reddy of Facebook. I find her an incredibly articulate speaker and an inspiring role model for youth.  Our consulate staff, as usual, did a great job, and it was wonderful that a number of our employees came out to join the event—including my guest blogger from a few weeks ago, Jeremy Jewett.

Diplomacy has come a long way from the old days when a diplomat’s role, outside of consular work issuing visas and taking care of citizens, focused almost exclusively on conducting government-to-government discussions.  We now have a much broader vision of the work of what constitutes diplomacy (http://www.state.gov/documents/organization/46839.pdf). 

Here at the Consulate General in Hyderabad, our two fundamental missions are consular work and fostering the people-to-people connections that form the foundation of the U.S.-India partnership.  As a generationally-challenged individual, I’m just learning about how social media can help us achieve our outreach objectives.  I’ve never blogged before, but I’m finding this a great way to share my impressions as I learn about India—and as a way to connect directly with the people of Andhra Pradesh.  (I’d also love to connect with the people from Orissa—but I’ve never heard back from anyone there.  So Orissa, let me know if you’re reading this!) 

Social Media is particularly intriguing to me because it lets us hear back from the people we are trying to engage.  That’s not always comfortable for us, because you don’t always say what we want to hear, but it’s good for us to know what you care about and what you think.  So, except on visa questions, keep using our Facebook page to let us know what’s on your mind.  We may not always give you a substantive response, but we will take in and consider what you have to say. 

In addition to fostering the kind of dialog we seek, I know Social Media is proving immensely helpful in a variety of ways.  My colleagues at the Embassy in New Delhi used Social Media extensively after the flooding in Leh and Ladakh.  They found Facebook a great way of communicating with Americans affected by the floods and with their family members worried about them in the U.S. 

 Today it’s helping loved ones stay in touch with victims of the earthquake and tsunami in Japan.  And there is no doubt that social media has been a factor in the mounting wave of expression of democratic aspirations in the Middle East and North Africa. 

Calling these “Facebook revolutions” is a major oversimplification, but it’s clear that at a minimum, activists used social media as a tool to mobilize like-minded citizens.  It’s really great that the same tools that help individuals share information with their families and let us exchange ideas with the public are also well-suited to other communications challenges. 

Again, thanks for coming out to meet us.  And let’s keep up the conversation.

A Time to Introspect

With the women who shaped their own destiny in Vijayawada.

March is women’s history month, an important time to think about where we’ve been and where we’re going.  I’ve just finished reading a report put out by the White House on the status of women in the United States (Women in America: Indicators of Social and Economic Well-Being).  I am very conscious of the fact that the situation of women in my country has changed enormously over my life time, and many changes have occurred since I last lived in the U.S. in 1998.  This report, though, shows how far women have come in just about every area.  It got me thinking about how fortunate I am, compared to my mother and grandmother.

Education:  I’m the first woman in my family to complete a bachelor’s degree, but my mother and grandmother, unusually for their time, both enrolled in university before dropping out to get married.  Today in the U.S., there are more women than men enrolled in higher education at every level.  And they aren’t dropping out to get married.  Women earn 60% of bachelor’s degrees and about half of all law and medical degrees.  They lag behind only in science, technology and engineering. 

Family:  My grandmother was sixteen when she married, my mother was 18, and I was 44.  Since 1950, the average age at first marriage for women in the United States has increased from 20 to 26.

Employment:  Both my mother and my grandmother worked all their lives, but in their day, that was the exception.  In 1950, only 33% of adult American women were in the labor force.  In 2009, that figure was 61%.  During the recent recession in the U.S., unemployment rose rapidly in professions dominated by men, like manufacturing and construction, but much less so in professions dominated by women, like education and health care.  And even with recovery, the fields in which women work are expected to represent a growing share of the U.S. economy of the future.

Income:  My mother worked two or even three jobs throughout her life to earn enough to support a family.  I am grateful to have a job that provides a secure living and know how lucky I am to have a husband who was willing to put his career on the back burner to support me in mine.  American working women have made strides toward equality in recent decades.  Earnings of women working full time in the U.S. have increased 31% since 1979; men’s earnings have increased only 2% over that period.  However, I’m more fortunate than most American women.  Although they are making up ground, women still earn only a little more than 80% as much as men with the same qualifications.

I know that that situation for women in India today is very different from that in the U.S., and that there are large differences in society, culture and history.  Women may have more political representation in India than in the U.S., but less economic power.  I suspect, though, that today’s urban, educated Indian women are living very different lives than their mothers and grandmothers.  I’d be interested to hear their stories.