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Million Dollar Political Muscle

Silicon Valley’s South Asian American community raises funds for the Democratic ticket

By Neela Banerjee

Nearly $1.4 million was raised for the Democratic Party last month at two events hosted by Indian Americans in Silicon Valley, showcasing their newfound political force.

President Clinton attended both the informal luncheon held at the Mountain View, Calif., home of Dr. Anmol Mahal and the fund-raising dinner for congressional candidate Mike Honda, D-San Jose, hosted by BJS Electronics CEO Jessie Singh.

The luncheon, organized by high-tech executive Vish Akella and Democratic Party fund-raiser Dinesh Sastry, brought in nearly $1 million, the largest amount ever raised at an Indian American political event.

“This election year I have focused my fund-raising efforts on entrepreneurs and the Indian community,” Sastry said. “I made a big push to bring new people to the party, new supporters.”

Both Singh and Sastry agree that this increased financial support of the Democratic Party is one way Silicon Valley’s South Asian American community can gain a stronger political voice.

“The last few years, I have felt like an evangelist because I have been preaching for the community to get involved,” Sastry said. “They could make a serious impact with funding and I think they are starting to realize this.”

Sastry wanted to invigorate the Democratic National Committee’s support system with people who had never given to the party before.

“I turned predominantly to the Indian community and with their support we are trying to build a partnership,” Sastry said. “This connection is coming together surprisingly well.”

Sastry, 29, who consults for high-tech start-ups in India and Silicon Valley while finishing up law school at Georgetown University in Washington, D.C., has been involved with the Democratic Party since 1988 when he traveled the country campaigning with former California governor and presidential candidate Jerry Brown.

“Brown gave me the opportunity at a young age to be a part of his dream to reform the political system,” Sastry said. Since then, Sastry has kept his hand in politics, even doing consulting work for the Prime Minister of India.

The luncheon event he organized with Akella focused on connecting the Indian American community with politicians so that “leaders of our community can voice their concerns face to face.” Sastry helped organize a similar event headlined by Gore at the San Francisco home of Hotmail founder Sabeer Bhatia in June, for which each couple paid $50,000.

At the luncheon, Sastry said, Clinton spoke freely about his hope to restore harmonious relations with India and he encouraged the South Asian American community to continue its involvement in politics.

“When the campaign started out Gore was not well versed in Indo-U.S. relations,” Sastry said. “But now he is an expert. He even took time out of his campaign schedule to host a lunch for Prime Minister Vaypayee on his recent visit to the U.S., which meant a lot to these big donors.”

Sastry compared the new relationship between Indian Americans and the Democratic Party to the alliance between the party and the Latino community forged a few years ago.

“Certain Democrats in California really came out and supported the Latino community during the past election years even though it was not popular with the proposition votes,” Sastry said. “But now the Latino community is making sure they are registered to vote and there is a strong following. The same thing will happen with the Indian community. It is about forming these relationships.”

Sastry, however, also commented that on most points the Indian American community’s agenda is identical to that of the rest of the country. “Like everyone, they want stronger education and better health care for the elderly,” he said.

Another major concern is immigration policy, according to Singh. “We are concerned about the H-1B visa and many people want to bring their parents over or their spouses without such a long waiting period,” he pointed out.

Singh, who has been in the Bay Area since 1986, said that as Indian Americans come into prominence, they see the importance of becoming involved in politics. “Once our basic needs as a community are covered, we can branch out,” he said.

Singh, who has been a supporter of the Democratic Party since the early 1990s (he has hosted vice-president Gore in his own home), also commented that the “United States is our home and we must be part of the system and I think we can do that by making connections.”

Singh hopes to see more Indian Americans run for office in years to come. But he is not sure of his own political ambitions. “Never say never, I guess,” he said. “But I have no intention of running right now.”

Meanwhile, Sastry said he has given the idea some thought. “I would consider it after the Census comes out,” he said. “I would like to take a good look at the climate and then maybe take a stab. It’s [another] way to fight for our rights and needs.”