India- USA some similarities
India and the USA are among the two largest countries in the world. USA is one of the richest countries in the world and India is among the poorest countries in the world. Both countries are in two different continents but still both countries have a few similarities.
Both countries are democracies. They both were British colonies before their independence. Both these nations have population, which are multi-ethnic but even so strong national patriotic pride has been established among its citizens. Both these countries are federations between the states and the center. The capitals of these countries, New Delhi and Washington, are not the main cultural and financial centers of their countries.
In both these countries the religion has strong holds within the country population. The majorities of the populations in these countries are conservative and respect their religion. Most of the Americans are Christians and they often visit their churches. Most of India's citizens are Hindus and they respect their religion's rituals. Both these countries also had some bizarre cults in which the cult leader completely dominated his followers.
In both these countries there was the same form of harsh racism against the lower classes of the society. In USA the Africans were treated in a very harsh way. They were the slaves of the community. They had no rights and even when they got their rights they still were treated in an ill manner and with disrespect. In some regions they had to sit at a distance from the whites. They were not allowed to enter restaurants, which served white people. They were not allowed to reside near white people but only in their quarters.
In India, the untouchables were also treated in a harsh manner. They had no rights and were treated in a very ill manner and with no respect. They had to sit at a distance from the upper castes. They were not allowed to enter the quarters and temples of the upper castes. They were also barred from entering restaurants, which served the upper castes.
The terms in which these communities are named are always changing. The Afro-Americans were first slaves, then they were coined Negro and Niger, then they were called blacks and now they are referred to as Afro-Americans. The untouchables were called Neech meaning low class, Mahatma Gandhi gave them the title Harijan, meaning children of God, now they are called Dalit meaning oppressed. Both these communities are raising their status through affirmative actions by the government. These affirmative actions have raised some tensions against the oppressed classes.
In both these countries some important political figures were assassinated. In USA, Abraham Lincoln, JF Kennedy, Robert Kennedy, Martin Luther King were assassinated. In India, Mahatma Gandhi, Indira Gandi and Rajiv Gandhi were assassinated. (see Gandhi murders and Indian nationalism).
Both these countries have a big film industry with lots of film stars. Watching movies in both the countries is a very popular pastime. Citizens in both these countries have a lot of admiration for their movie stars and they imitate their film stars fashion. It is a normal feature in these countries when new movies are released that there are large queues to get tickets for the first shows.
In the USA culture, specially the screen culture and in comics there are many stories about aliens from outer space who have abnormal powers and even look abnormal. There are many stories to do with bad aliens who terrorize the human race and then the good aliens help the human race fight the evil aliens. In Indian ancient cultures, especially Hinduism, there are also many stories about Gods who live in heaven meaning outer space who come to earth and rescued the human race. Many of these Gods have non-human features, like more than two hands, more than one head and more than two eyes.
In both these countries there are families who are political dynasties in which many tragedies occurred. In India it is the Nehru-Gandhi dynasty and in the USA it is Kennedy dynasty. The Nehru-Gan