Biden refers to Harris as ‘South Asian’, not Indian

By Arul Louis New York, Nov 8 : While praising his running mate Kamala Harris as “a fantastic Vice President”, US President-elect Joe Biden avoided calling her “Indian” and instead referred to her as “South Asian”.
“I will be honoured to be serving with a fantastic Vice President, Kamala Harris, who will make history as the first woman, first Black woman, first woman of South Asian descent, and first daughter of immigrants ever elected to national office in this country,” he said at a victory rally in his home state of Delaware on Saturday night.
Race categorisations recognised by the US government do not include “South Asian”, while Asian Indian is listed officially for people of Indian descent.
People of Indian descent also officially come under the broad category of Asians that includes people from across the continent, but there is no “South Asian”.
South Asian in common and academic use includes Indians, Pakistanis, Bangladeshis, Sri Lankans, Maldivians, Bhutanese and Nepalese, and it is preferred by some “progressive” Indians in the US who seek an identity that they see as more inclusive than Indian and perhaps more “politically correct”.
Sometimes in common usage “South Asian”, is used to refer to someone whose national identity cannot be ascertained but has the physical or other characteristics common in the region.