The Guardian View on COVID-19 and Cults of Strength: the Weakest Response

A specialist in American studies, Lalatendu Das has worked in various capacities for more than two decades with several institutions and organizations in India and abroad, including some leading US-based groups. He has taught courses in Political Science and American Studies, and delivered lectures in his research area in several countries across the world, including the US, Turkey, India, Thailand, South Korea, Hong Kong and Indonesia. Lalatendu got international scholarships, awards and grants for his research works and the presentations. He received the "Focus Field Award" from ARNOVA at Washington, DC, and the “Superlative Award” from the Indo-American Center for International Studies. Lalatendu also received a grant from ARNOVA to visit the University of Washington in Seattle where he talked on American civil rights issues and chaired an international panel session. He made his last presentation in 2018 at the University of Hong Kong’s School of Social Sciences on the changing paradigm in African American philanthropy in the 21st century. Lalatendu was scheduled to visit Concordia University in Montréal, Canada, in Summer 2020, to speak on the current discourses on African American philanthropy, but due to the COVID-19 pandemic, he will take part in a virtual global event in 2021 to discuss his research findings. He can be reached at lalatendu2016@gmail.com.