Twelve-year-old Indian-origin girl, Ananya Vinay, may have become the first solo champion in four years of the coveted National Spelling Bee contest in US, but was not immune to racial remarks by television anchors supposedly congratulating her.
After her victory, Vinay was invited by CNN and asked to spell ‘covfefe’ – a word coined and made famous by US President Donald Trump.
Irrespective of whether Vinay got the spelling – of the made-up word – right, what stood out in the segment was the CNN anchor’s remarks.
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“We’re not sure whether its roots are in Sanskrit, which is probably what you’re used to using,” said the anchor, displaying gross ignorance of South Asian culture and the language that Indians speak.
Watch the entire segment here: