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India Currents gave me a voice in days I was very lost. Having my articles selected for publishing was very validating – Shailaja Dixit, Executive Director, Narika, Fremont
Foster City Commissioner Evan Adams’s Offensive Tweet
An anti-Indian tweet by Foster City Planning Commissioner Evan Adams sent shockwaves through the Indian American community earlier this month. On his private Twitter account, Adams called for monitoring Indians in the United States in a post that read,
“Time for the USA to start monitoring Indians in the USA and connections to Indian Defence Contractors with Russia. Shut down the $$$.”
The tweet referenced a Eurasian Times article on an Aero India exhibition for military aircraft, which included a comment on India continuing to buy crude oil from Russia despite western sanctions.
The post, now deleted, provoked outrage among Indian Americans who form nearly 23% of Foster City residents. They condemned its anti-Indian sentiment and called for Adams’s immediate removal from public office.
Former Mayor Richa Awasthi denounces tweet
Former Foster City mayor Richa Awasthi sent a letter to the town council on March 3, demanding Adams’s immediate resignation. She called his tweet “disturbing and unacceptable not only to me but also to a massive percent of the residents of Foster City who are of Indian origin.”
Given the recent rise in anti-Asian hate incidents, Awasthi warned, “This raises many red flags, concerns, and questions. It has the potential to lead to hate crimes against Indians.”
She called for city councilors to take immediate action by removing Adams from the Planning Commission. Awasthi pointed out that Adams’s comment, especially from someone holding a commission role, puts Foster City in a bad light.
“The Council appoints commissioners, and they must take immediate action to send a message of unity and respect for diversity that we value so much in Foster City. Evan Adams should be removed from the Planning Commission immediately.”
Awasthi, a first-generation Indian immigrant (now naturalized US citizen), served as the first (Indian) immigrant woman Mayor of Foster City. A city resident for over two decades, Awasthi stated that she, like other immigrant families, had “built a life here with honesty, integrity, hard work, and grit, and making valuable contributions in both public and private sectors.”
Community leaders speak up
According to a report in the San Mateo Daily Journal, Adams wanted the U.S. to scrutinize funding connections in the U.S. to other countries doing business with Russia, following its invasion of Ukraine.
He later apologized for the tweet saying he had written it late at night and wanted to learn from his mistake.
During public comments at a March 6 council meeting, Former Mayor Sanjay Gehani denounced the offensive tweet, criticizing remarks made against a selected section of the community by publicly elected officials. Foster City’s mayor Jon Froomin agreed to follow up on the issue by putting it on the agenda for discussion at a March 20 council meeting.
Apology not enough says Awasthi
Though Adams apologized and took the post down, he will not resign from the Planning Commission.
In a statement, Richa Awasthi told India Currents, “I don’t think an apology is enough. His tweet is not inarticulate at all. It is quite clear. Is the apology that ‘I was tired, so my real self got revealed’?”
“There are many examples from the private sector of employees being fired if they make inappropriate social media posts. This is undoubtedly a racist post. And he holds a public office role! He represents Foster City. He should be removed from the office.”
India Currents’ Stop The Hate campaign is made possible with funding from the California State Library (CSL) in partnership with the California Commission on Asian and Pacific Islander American Affairs (CAPIAA). The views expressed on this website and other materials produced by India Currents do not necessarily reflect the official policies of the CSL, CAPIAA or the California government.
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Photo by Sara Kurfeß on Unsplash