Indian-origin American legislator, Kshama Sawant, on Friday protested at the Indian embassy in Seattle after being denied an emergency card to see her sick family in Bengaluru. Wawant had formerly served on the Seattle City Council.
She claimed in a blog on X that her father’s card had been granted while her application had been turned down three times because of her “reject list.”
Nevertheless, Sawant responded to claims of physical abuse by officials by the Indian consulate by posting about “unauthorised entry by certain individuals” on social media platforms.
Also, the activist blamed PM Modi and the BJP management regarding the situation.
Previously, she had protested against the Citizenship Amendment Act ( CAA ), the National Register of Citizens ( NRC ), and supported the farmers ‘ protests.
Sawant, who was born in Pune, earned her bachelor’s degree from the University of Mumbai in 1994. Eventually, she relocated to the United States and received her 2003 North Carolina State University degree in finance.
Prior to beginning her political job, she spent three years teaching economics at the secondary level. She affiliated herself with Socialist Alternative, a US-based social organisation, in 2006. She effectively became a member of the Seattle City Council the following year despite an ineffective attempt to appoint a seat in the Washington House of Representatives in 2012.
She spearheaded the policy that established a demand-based$ 15 daily minimum wage in Seattle. However, her essential stance toward the American government and anti-Hindu remarks have sparked unhappiness among community leaders and Indian American organizations.
In 2023, under her leadership, Seattle became the first US area to prevent caste-based bias through government regulations. Hindu Americans, who argued that this action unfairly targeted their society, which is already subject to discrimination in the US, were vocal critics of this decision.
In 2020, she effectively pushed through a Seattle City Council resolution opposing the CAA and NRC, claiming these actions “discriminating against women, Muslims, people of suppressed groups, indigenous and Transgender people”.
