Indian-Origin Woman Slams US TikToker For Making Fun Of Indian Accent: "Leave Us Alone"

A TikToker is facing backlash online after a woman of Indian origin called her out for mocking the accent of an Indian woman arrested for shoplifting in the US. The TikToker mimicked the woman's interaction with police, captured on bodycam footage, where she asked if she could pay for the items she was accused of stealing. The video gained over 1.4 million views, sparking criticism from Cassandra Jerome, an Indian-origin creator who accused the US-based woman of casual racism.

Ms Jerome explained that while some stereotypes can be humorous, mocking someone's accent comes across as ignorant. She said that jokes about accents can be funny if done well and have context, but simply laughing at how someone sounds reveals the comedian's limited perspective.

"If the Indian accent is used in a joke that has some context and is done so well that it shocks me, it gets a laugh. But when the punchline is that we sound weird, I have learned something about you. All it tells me is that your worldview has not moved much past your nose. When does it stop being funny?" she said in a video.

"To me, it was normal. Thousands of people around me had that accent. You're hehe-ing and haha-ing over an accent that tons of people have. Expand your horizons and leave us alone. Please," she added.

Watch the video here:

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A post shared by Cassandra Jerome (@casjerome)

Many users expressed frustration and shared similar stories of casual racism. Others highlighted the importance of unity and mutual support rather than pulling each other down. 

One user wrote, "What's interesting is that there are also so many variations of Indian accents, too, but people love to do that one."

Another commented, "Also, 10/10 times when people say 'I do a great Indian accent, ' you just know it's gonna be horrible and borderline racist."

A third said, "Honestly. Everyone's accent is beautiful and special, whether it's Indian, French, Mexican, Chinese, African, Central American, it doesn't matter; everyone speaks differently, and if you laugh at that, I feel like you're uncultured."

A fourth added, 'It gets especially frustrating when it's coming from another person of colour, like why are we infighting, we should be on the same side, not put each other down."