As a handful of lawmakers in state legislatures and U.S. Congress push bills to freeze or end skilled immigration, online hate surges and Indian Americans and Indian tech professionals increasingly find themselves at the center of a rapidly shifting national narrative.
The political rhetoric against employment-based visas, especially H-1B, has intensified in recent months. The visa program, often used by American companies to hire highly skilled foreign workers in engineering, information technology, and healthcare, is now being portrayed by critics as a vehicle for “job theft” and “wage suppression.” This intensifying debate has spilled over into social media, where screenshots, memes, and inflammatory posts are fueling a climate of resentment and suspicion.
President Donald Trump and his administration have been under pressure from his MAGA supporters, who have been steadily amplifying their attacks on the H-1B program on social media, especially on X.
One user, Andrew F. Branca, an attorney, recently posted a sharply critical message targeting Indian professionals in the United States.
He claimed that Indians often boast about being high earners and taxpayers but argued that “THEY STOLE THESE JOBS FROM AMERICANS, USING FRAUDULENT CREDENTIALS AND RACIAL NEPOTISM, and the Americans from whom these jobs were stolen would OTHERWISE be earning these high wages and paying these taxes.” Branca further added, “These Indians aren’t ADDING ANYTHING OF VALUE TO AMERICA. If they COULD ADD VALUE, they would have DONE THAT IN INDIA. They’re merely EXPLOITING AMERICA.”
Such posts have contributed to an escalating online discourse which is increasingly polarized, framing Indian immigrants as economic threats now.
And it is not only anonymous users driving the hostility.
READ: ‘Shutdown Indian immigration’: Anti-India backlash surges online amid US-India tensions (October 29, 2025)
Echoing that sentiment, another user posted an even harsher response: “I am tired of the theft. Remove them. I have no compassion when our young people have no hope and no jobs. Penalize the shit companies who offshore our jobs. Fuck big corp,” she wrote, sharing an image depicting racist attacks aimed at Indians on X.
Adding to the shifting perspective toward Indian Americans, another user, Stephen Horn, wrote in a post on X, “If your interests as an Indian American align more with the interests of India than the interests of America, there’s nothing American about you.” The post, shared on Nov. 6, has already reached 28.6k views.
The tone of these conversations reflects a broader sense of economic anxiety, especially among groups who feel left behind by globalization and technological disruption. As a result, the anger is increasingly being directed at individuals, particularly Indian tech workers who find themselves at the center of a culture war over identity, loyalty, and opportunity.
Another user, commenting on a post on X about an H-1B worker, took direct aim at Indians, saying, “all body-shops & consultancies should be banned from staffing ‘global (Indian) talent’ via the work visa program, thereby requiring corporations who need certain skills to hire directly & prioritize hiring Americans!”
While another reflected on the skills of the Indian Americans, saying, “If Indian ‘Americans’ are so special, why did they need to come to a White country to make something of themselves?”
READ: Indian Americans, Indians on H-1B visas confront shifting public perceptions in Trump’s America (November 15, 2025)
The growing hostility toward Indian Americans appears to be intensifying, both in workplaces and across social media platforms. Many users are becoming increasingly vocal, openly sharing racially charged statements and blaming Indians for what they perceive as the “abuse” of the H-1B visa system. This shifting sentiment reflects a broader frustration among some Americans who believe that Indian professionals are taking away opportunities meant for local workers, further fueling an already tense debate over immigration and employment.
However, tech industry leaders and economists have repeatedly noted that high-skilled immigrants, particularly those from India, have played a crucial role in strengthening American innovation, founding startups, and filling critical workforce shortages in STEM fields. Yet, as political climates harden, these contributions often take a backseat to fear-driven narratives.