846:DIPLOMATIC HISTORY the (invariably capitalized)"Free World"rang hollow in the face of the dis- crimination and violence endured by many African Americans,and as massive resistance in the South to the Supreme Court's Brown ruling of 1954 began to gather pace." After the so-called loss of China to communism in 1949,successive admin- istrations in Washington experienced deep anxiety that further setbacks were likely if Asian hearts and minds were not won over to the Western position. The frustrating stalemate in Korea,followed by the emergence of a Commu- nist state in North Vietnam in 1954,added to the sense that the United States, and the message it was carrying,was not only on the defensive,but steadily losing ground.Amid speculation that McCarthyism had brought the interna- tional image of the United States to a low point,in the summer of 1o53 the NSC asked for studies on the subject to be compiled.The results made for some uncomfortable reading,with links with the older European colonial powers seen as a major problem,and suspicion of American imperialism considered "the single most adverse influence on American prestige";in its analysis of the Far East,the Operations Coordinating Board (OCB)reported the prevalence of "racial sensitivity and antipathy to [the]Western powers,"as well as the "per- sistent belief,despite U.S.professions to contrary,that [the]U.S.regards Asiatic people as inferior,that [the]U.S.tends to patronize Asia,and that U.S.peoples and practices do not accord Asiatic governments genuinely equal status with [the]Western powers."3 These issues were particularly pronounced when it came to relations with India,often considered the most significant non-Communist power in Asia, and where for Indians,as Chester Bowles,the U.S.ambassador,wrote to John Foster Dulles in March 1953,"in forming individual and national attitudes toward world affairs the color question is the most basic of all."+From the record of U.S.diplomacy in the Middle East,Asia,and South Africa,it was easy to draw the lesson that the U.S.government,as at home,identified with the interests of whites over nonwhites.In February 1955,the U.S.charge d'affaires in New Delhi was telling the New York Tintes correspondent Cy Sulzberger that anti-American feeling in India derived from: 21.See,for example,Dudziak,Cold War Civil Rights,118-19;also Frenise A.Logan, "Racism and U.S.-Indian Relations,1947-1953:Views in the Indian Press,"Pacific Historical Review 54 (February 1985):71-79. 22.See Christina Klein,Cold War Orientalism:Asia in the Middlebrou Imagination, 1945-196r (Berkeley,CA,2003),27-28. 23.Study prepared by the OCB,"Reported Decline in U.S.Prestige Abroad,"23 Sep- tember 1953,in FRUS,1952-54 (Washington,DC,1983),pt.1,1:1466-47,1489-90,1531. 24.This was also,Bowles believed,the reason why most Indians looked "with strong sym- pathy toward other Asian people including the Chinese"and "admit to [a]certain twisted, secret,pleasurable reaction when they hear that their fellow Asians,the Chinese,are success- fully holding off the Americans in Korea."See Bowles to Dulles,20 March 1953.folder 243, box 94,Chester Bowles Papers,Sterling Memorial Library,Yale University,New Haven, Connecticut.the (invariably capitalized) “Free World” rang hollow in the face of the dis￾crimination and violence endured by many African Americans, and as massive resistance in the South to the Supreme Court’s Brown ruling of 1954 began to gather pace.21 After the so-called loss of China to communism in 1949, successive admin￾istrations in Washington experienced deep anxiety that further setbacks were likely if Asian hearts and minds were not won over to the Western position. The frustrating stalemate in Korea, followed by the emergence of a Commu￾nist state in North Vietnam in 1954, added to the sense that the United States, and the message it was carrying, was not only on the defensive, but steadily losing ground.22 Amid speculation that McCarthyism had brought the interna￾tional image of the United States to a low point, in the summer of 1953 the NSC asked for studies on the subject to be compiled. The results made for some uncomfortable reading, with links with the older European colonial powers seen as a major problem, and suspicion of American imperialism considered “the single most adverse influence on American prestige”; in its analysis of the Far East, the Operations Coordinating Board (OCB) reported the prevalence of “racial sensitivity and antipathy to [the] Western powers,” as well as the “per￾sistent belief, despite U.S. professions to contrary, that [the] U.S. regards Asiatic people as inferior, that [the] U.S. tends to patronize Asia, and that U.S. peoples and practices do not accord Asiatic governments genuinely equal status with [the] Western powers.”23 These issues were particularly pronounced when it came to relations with India, often considered the most significant non-Communist power in Asia, and where for Indians, as Chester Bowles, the U.S. ambassador, wrote to John Foster Dulles in March 1953, “in forming individual and national attitudes toward world affairs the color question is the most basic of all.”24 From the record of U.S. diplomacy in the Middle East, Asia, and South Africa, it was easy to draw the lesson that the U.S. government, as at home, identified with the interests of whites over nonwhites. In February 1955, the U.S. chargé d’affaires in New Delhi was telling the New York Times correspondent Cy Sulzberger that anti-American feeling in India derived from: 846 : diplomatic history 21. See, for example, Dudziak, Cold War Civil Rights, 118–19; also Frenise A. Logan, “Racism and U.S.-Indian Relations, 1947–1953: Views in the Indian Press,” Pacific Historical Review 54 (February 1985): 71–79. 22. See Christina Klein, Cold War Orientalism: Asia in the Middlebrow Imagination, 1945–1961 (Berkeley, CA, 2003), 27–28. 23. Study prepared by the OCB, “Reported Decline in U.S. Prestige Abroad,” 23 Sep￾tember 1953, in FRUS, 1952–54 (Washington, DC, 1983), pt. 1, 1:1466–47, 1489–90, 1531. 24. This was also, Bowles believed, the reason why most Indians looked “with strong sym￾pathy toward other Asian people including the Chinese” and “admit to [a] certain twisted, secret, pleasurable reaction when they hear that their fellow Asians, the Chinese, are success￾fully holding off the Americans in Korea.” See Bowles to Dulles, 20 March 1953, folder 243, box 94, Chester Bowles Papers, Sterling Memorial Library, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut