‘There’s a lot of hate’: rightwing racism stirs south Asian mobilization in Texas

In state that become ‘ground zero’ for discrimination against south Asians, experts say they are seeing voters motivated to fight back

Last winter, while Pooja Sethi was canvassing to become the Democratic candidate for the Texas house of representatives, she received a text from a staff member alerting her to a post on X. The Turning Point USA influencer Savanah Hernandez – a Trump supporter known for creating videos that target immigrants – had posted a photo of Sethi’s campaign banner with the caption: “Welcome to politics in Texas.”

The post went viral.