Indian in race for Georgia Secy of State

[Guest guest]

Indian in race for Georgia Secy of State

 

ATLANTA DIARY | Meeta Chaitanya Bhatnagar

 

April 12, 2005|20:04 IST

As winter sheds its residual cloak of grey, Atlanta's Indians prepare

themselves for a resplendent spring season ripe with Georgian peaches.

 

Almost everyone who lives here, including the swelling Indian

Diaspora, feels a seamless sense of unity with the place and its

sensibility.

 

The legendary southern warmth and hospitality of this place resonates

with echoes from home.

 

Not many people were surprised therefore, to learn that Georgia may

see a southern (and southern Indian, at that) democrat as the

Secretary of State.

 

Atlanta is preparing for the selection of the 2006 Georgia Secretary

of State, and amidst stiff competition for the post, young Atlanta-

based democrat, Shyam Reddy, has entered the race for the crown jewel.

 

Ever since he announced his candidature on March 23 this year, the

community has been abuzz with slight tremors regarding him.

 

So, who is Shyam Reddy and why is his foray into this tremendously

volatile race significant for the Diaspora?

 

The answers to both these questions are in tandem with each other.

 

Reddy deigns himself a 'fiscally conservative and socially

responsible' candidate representing the American dream.

 

His parents, he says, emigrated to the US in pursuit of a better life

and raised him in Georgia, reminding him to be ever cognizant of the

fact that he and others like them were fortunate to live in a country

that allowed, fostered even, equality and opportunity for all.

 

As is the case with most Indian families that affirm ties to their

roots, he says that he was 'raised in a strict environment deeply

grounded in strong principles and moral values.

 

Again, as is the case with most urban and economically mobile Indian

families, he was encouraged to pursue and complete his education.

 

As a result, Reddy went to Atlanta's Emory University where he

received a Bachelors Degree in political science and a Masters Degree

in Public Health.

 

He also attended the University of Georgia, earning a degree in law.

 

Upon graduation, Reddy began his career as a corporate attorney in

the Atlanta office of Kilpatrick Stockton LLP.

While with the firm, he was selected for the prestigious L.E.A.D.

Atlanta Class of 2005. Reddy, with his broad legal experience in a

plethora of corporate matters, including mergers and acquisitions and

venture capital transactions was among the 36 people chosen.

 

Becoming a public servant and serving fellow Georgians, however is

something that he has wanted to do from the very outset.

 

With his expertise in business and legal arenas, he is expected to be

fully aware of the Secretary of State's office and the significant

role it plays.

 

Reddy is a diehard Southern Democrat, fostering a business-friendly

environment that will make Georgia the preferred destination for

business.

 

It is anyone's guess that his candidacy therefore is a matter of

pride for all Indians who are a vibrant and socially responsible

ethnic group of the American mosaic.

 

More importantly, Reddy inadvertently represents a formidable segment

of Indian Americans who are not in any ambiguous or 'confused' mind

space regarding their patriotic or political affiliations.

 

This growing breed of assertive, sure, enterprising Indian American

morass is a stark contrast to the hackneyed and minuscule mass of

neverland inhabitants portrayed in mass media as the 'confused

desis', hardly Indian, barely American, wholly in-between.

 

Reddy says that while his parents 'instilled in me a deep-rooted

appreciation for our Indian heritage, I was raised first and foremost

as an American'.

 

His assertion in this regard has been welcomed by many other Indians

who have invaded (without meaning to do so) the land of dichotomy as

regards national loyalty.

 

It may be a small step, but for many desis, who know themselves to be

Indian 'somewhere, somehow', Reddy who is living out the immigrant

dream with his wife, his dog, 'peaches' and an active public career

as an American citizen, it's the perfect coming out, if you will.

 

And for those of us who still feel that any Indian, resident, non-

resident, this generation or that should first be an Indian above all

else, this is a lesson in the making too.

 

For, what is in one's past, in one's roots or in one's blood cannot

be negated by passport formalities and citizenship rules.

 

Indeed, it may very well be that it is easy to take one out from

India, but difficult to take India out from one. That is why Bobby

Jindal and Shyam Reddy figure in our news and in our banter. Not too

hard to figure.

 

http://www.hindustantimes.com/news/181_1316953,00410010.htm?

headline=Indian~in~race~for~Georgia~Secy~of~State