Bargaining Freedom

As an Indian growing up among many other Indians, I have witnesses many transactions and barters between members of my family, community and beyond. There is one undeniable observation that I have about us: we love bargains! The time I spend with one of my close Indian friends typically starts with bragging sessions of our most recent bargains. A Tommy Hilfiger purse that was found for $2 at Marshall's is an example of the great bargains we boast. At times, I may have a whole outfit with shoes and accessories that I scored for less than $10. My American friends think it is tacky to show off my shopping skills. My Indian friends compete in the shopping scavenger hunt.

However there is one thing that Indians have acquired for which no expense was spared. Our freedom came at a dear price for which lives, emotion and much passion was spent. Writers, critics and scholars often evaluate the price of freedom and serve reminders for the struggles and lives that were invested to allow our day to day lives. Our leaders often provide inspiration for other movements that result in freedoms of others in our world.

Dr. Martin Luther King studied Mahatma Gandhi and his non-violent tactics as he navigated African Americans to emancipation. Mahatma Gandhi offers inspiration to leaders and citizens around the world as a result of his efforts to bring India to liberty. Often cited are horrid stories originally related by our grandparents of the tragedies that occurred. Of the ones I recall, hands and fingers of cotton and silk weavers were cut off in order to control the textile market and promote European imports. Similarly treated were workers that impacted the production of spices and other products of value.

The freedom of India has an impact on our daily lives. Can we say that we would even be in the United States if it were not for India's freedom movement? Where would our lives be and how would we be living? We sometimes dismiss the traits of our previous generations and how that affects our lives today. I remember stories that my mother often told me about my grandparents, who like many Indians, I never met since they spent the latter parts of their lives on the other side of the world. I often think that many of my traits are likely shared with my grandparents and their grandparents. On a larger scale, if we look at some of the injustices our people faced several generations ago, we may see the impact that has on our lives today.

For example, prior to independence, the economic policies of the British rule stripped India of most of the gold, jewels, silver and silk to be shipped back to Britain as tax and sometimes sold in open auctions, ridding India of its once abundant wealth in precious stones. Is this why Indians are always trying to negotiate tax on large ticket items? How many times have we seen Indians who think because they are paying cash, they should not have to pay tax? Sometimes books are fidgeted and we really don't have any guilt about it and we certainly do not share the outlook that many Americans have that this is a means of stealing. We all benefit from social services that are paid for by taxes, such as public schools, fire departments and police departments. We utilize the services and we somehow feel like it is okay to not pay the taxes that pay for services that we use.

Another example is about three times a year, I buy a big bag of Basmati rice (or at least the bags says it is Basmati), and recently my pit-bull puppy fell sick and the doctor said to feed her some rice. I was searching the cupboards for regular rice because I was thinking I would go broke feeding my puppy Basmati rice, until a friend pointed out that based on my annual consumption of rice, I spend about $8 a month on rice. I folded and fed my puppy Basmati rice, but it got me thinking about why I think that Basmati rice is this super-expensive luxury that must be hoarded. At the same time, I spend $45 every month getting my nails done. This attitude is certainly inherited from my heritage. And while my attitude shapes my experience in the free economy of the United States of America, I must always remember that the price of that freedom was one that my people did not bargain at the checkout lane.