Indian Tech Workers in the U.S. Face Increase of Online Hate Speech

In tech, it can be easy to obsess over code, AI breakthroughs, the next big app. But while the industry pushes forward, a more human story is quietly playing out in the tech world, and it’s not a good one. Newsweek recently reported a rise in racism and hate speech aimed at Indian tech workers in the U.S., a seeming backlash over H-1B visas.

Last year 71% of H-1B visas were awarded to applicants from India, giving online trolls and attention seekers a target for their attacks. Even politicians have leaned into that number, tossing out “America First” slogans and even demanding an end to so-called “Indian H-1Bs”. And here’s the thing: when that kind of talk makes it onto a campaign stage, it doesn’t just disappear. It grows, showing up in tweets, TikToks, and YouTube comments, eventually finding its way into everyday life and conversations.

"It's always been a politically volatile issue, but I think more so in the last, I would say, 10 years or so," Gaurav Khanna, an associate professor of economics at the University of California San Diego, told Newsweek.

The consequences aren’t abstract. Stop AAPI Hate found that online attacks against South Asians jumped 75% after the 2024 election. In January 2025 alone, nearly 88,000 anti-Asian insults were tracked, along with a 50% rise in violent threats, the worst numbers on record since tracking began. Moonshot, a group that targets online terrorism, found more than 44,000 slurs targeting South Asians in extremist online spaces during May and June of this year.

And beyond the hate speech, there’s a quieter harm: the stereotypes. Indians get painted into two boxes: the “brilliant tech worker” or the “low-wage laborer.” Neither leaves room for any nuance, for actual people with actual stories. Worse, these stereotypes can isolate people, making them feel too boxed in or too ashamed to reach out for support.

At the end of the day, this isn’t just about visas or policy charts. It’s about how the stories we tell (especially in politics) can harden into prejudice. Once that happens, battered communities are left to deal with the consequences. The Newsweek piece is a reminder that fighting racism isn’t just about shutting down the ugliest slurs. It’s also about pushing back against the narratives that make them feel normal in the first place.

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