Washington/New Delhi: Declaring that both the Democratic and Republican parties serve billionaire interests rather than working people, Indian-origin socialist leader Kshama Sawant has entered the race for the U.S. Congress as an independent candidate.
In the midst of rigorous canvassing across Washington's 9th Congressional district, Kshama Sawant spared time for an exclusive interview with The Mooknayak.
In a detailed conversation, the former Seattle City Council member explains why she believes America's two-party system has failed workers, speaks about her landmark anti-caste campaign, and alleges that the Modi government placed her on a "reject list" after denying her an Indian visa three times.
For the unversed, Kshama Sawant championed the historic legislation that made Seattle the first U.S. city to ban caste discrimination. Passed in February 2023, the law added caste as a protected class in housing and employment, giving victims legal recourse.
Sawant spoke about her decision to challenge the Democratic and Republican political establishment, her campaign against caste discrimination, her priorities on economic justice and immigration, and her allegation that the Indian government's repeated visa denials amount to political retaliation.
Explaining why she is contesting the election as an independent socialist, Sawant said she believes both the Democratic and Republican parties serve billionaire interests rather than working people. "Both the Democratic and Republican parties represent the billionaires and multimillionaires, all of whom profit from war, genocide, climate catastrophe, and the searing cost-of-living crisis. Far from being a lesser evil, the Democratic Party is, along with the Republican Party, one of the two most powerful parties of global capitalism."
Sawant sharply criticized her main opponent, Democratic Congressman Adam Smith, alleging that he has consistently supported military funding, voted to fund Israel during the Gaza war, supported the creation and continued funding of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), and received financial backing from billionaire donors and pro-Israel political organizations.
"Adam Smith also voted to create ICE under Republican President George W. Bush. Since then, Smith has voted repeatedly to fund ICE to the tune of nearly $115 billion. Smith is bankrolled by billionaires like Palantir’s Alexander Karp and pro-genocide organizations like AIPAC," she stated.
A recent New York Times/Siena poll shows that “political disillusionment seems only to be deepening.” The survey estimates that only 26 percent of voters are happy with the Democratic Party and only 33 percent with the Republican Party. Nearly two-thirds of respondents under the age of 30 are angry with both parties.Kshama Sawant
She argued that many of the policies she opposes including U.S. military interventions, support for Israel, attacks on immigrants and cuts to social welfare have received bipartisan support over several administrations.
In contrast, Sawant has a track record of winning unheard-of working-class victories through her decade as the sole socialist on the Seattle City Council. She elaborates, "I used my office to build mass movements against the Democratic Party and the elite they represent. Working people and I were able to win the nation's highest minimum wage (now at $21.30/hour with inflation increases), defeat billionaires like Jeff Bezos to win the Amazon Tax that raises hundreds of millions of dollars annually for affordable housing, and landmark renters' rights. My office also won the nation's second and strongest resolution for a ceasefire in Gaza. Adam Smith's record is monstrous, but the truth is that the genocide, the U.S.-Israel wars on Iran, Lebanon, and Iraq, and the attacks on immigrants by ICE have all been bipartisan." She argued that many of the policies she opposes including U.S. military interventions, support for Israel, attacks on immigrants and cuts to social welfare have received bipartisan support over several administrations.
Sawant also cited public dissatisfaction with both major political parties, pointing to recent polling that she said shows growing anger among working people and younger voters over economic hardship and war. Sawant said her campaign is built on what she described as a decade of successful working-class struggles during her tenure on the Seattle City Council.
"On February 21st, 2023, Seattle became the first city anywhere outside South Asia to ban caste-based discrimination. This was a rare offensive victory against the right-wing Hindu fundamentalist regime of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Prime Minister Narendra Modi in India. Caste discrimination is a very serious issue in the United States, even though many outside the South Asian immigrant community may not be aware of it. This is exactly why my City Council office fought for the ban on caste discrimination. The genesis of this movement in 2023 really came together, in many ways, around another fight against oppression," Kshama explains.
In January-February of 2020, her office won the first-ever American resolution condemning the anti-Muslim anti-poor CAA-NRC citizenship laws of Modi and the BJP. "But winning it was far from easy or straightforward. We won only after a massive fightback against the Democratic Party and the Modi-aligned Hindu right wing. Many of the Democrats on the City Council were actually quite angry at me for bringing this resolution. They did not want to take a public position against the Modi regime, and behind the scenes, many were getting ready to vote no," Sawant shared.
"My office brought hundreds of people to City Hall, who courageously spoke out. We united Hindu, Muslim, and Dalit working people along with non-South-Asian workers. We made it very clear to the Democratic politicians that if they voted no, they will be siding with the right wing and can't credibly call themselves progressives. The Democrats understood that they would have to pay a political price for betraying working people and the oppressed, and so they were forced to vote yes. All of this is illustrative of a class struggle based fighting strategy. This was the same approach we used to win the ban on caste-based discrimination. We made it clear, including with the 'Which Side Are You On?' leaflets, that there was no neutral ground the politicians can stand on. They were either against oppression or on the side of the Hindu right wing. This was what forced them to vote yes on our ordinance to ban caste-based discrimination."
Contrasting Seattle with unsuccessful attempts elsewhere, Sawant said efforts to ban caste discrimination in California and New York failed because campaigners relied too heavily on the Democratic Party instead of building independent mass movements. Sharing her ambitions to amplify Ambedkarite movement, Kshama says, "I have pledged that if elected, I will immediately use my Congressional office to build a mass movement to fight for a ban on caste-based discrimination nationally."
She said she intends to use the same organising strategy that she employed in Seattle and wants to amplify Ambedkarite and anti-caste voices in debates involving discrimination in technology companies, universities and workplaces.
According to Sawant, her objective is not simply to introduce legislation but to build sufficient public pressure to force action from lawmakers.
"There is a reason why efforts to ban caste discrimination in California and New York states failed and ours in Seattle succeeded. It's because Seattle's movement leaders like myself had no illusions in the Democratic Party, and we built an independent mass fightback that put enormous pressure on the Democratic politicians and forced their hand. That is the approach we will need in Congress against both the Democratic and Republican parties. I am running not to be a status quo politician but to disrupt business as usual in Washington D.C.," she asserted.
During the interview, Sawant also spoke about her inability to visit her elderly mother and family in Bengaluru.
She told The Mooknayak that the Indian government has rejected her visa application three times. "I am still being denied a visa to visit my elderly mother and my family in India. The Modi regime has rejected my visa application three times. The Consulate of India in Seattle informed me that I am on the Modi government’s “reject list.” In other words, the Modi government has blacklisted me and banned me from India. After three visa denials, it is completely clear that the visa denial represents political retaliation by Modi’s far right, anti-Muslim, anti-worker regime. I am not the only one, the Modi government has retaliated against many in this way, denying them the right to enter India, for daring to criticize Modi’s horrific policies against workers, farmers, Muslims, and oppressed-caste community members in India", she stated.
Sawant said her campaign would continue opposing what she described as the influence of Hindutva politics in the United States.
If elected, she said she plans to introduce legislation addressing the persecution of Sikh Americans and activists while continuing to campaign against Islamophobia.
"My campaign is continuing the fight against Modi and the Hindutva influence in American politics. If elected to Congress, I plan to bring a bill to stop the persecution of Sikh Americans and activists. I will also continue an explicit fight against Islamophobia. Despite nominally being a member of the Sikh Congressional Caucus, Adam Smith has not condemned the Modi regime's killings of Sikh community members in the United States and Canada. Nor has he done any outreach with Sikh Americans to address their safety concerns."
Throughout the interview, Sawant maintained that her campaign is focused on building independent mass movements for workers, immigrants and oppressed communities rather than working within the traditional Democratic or Republican political framework.