Queens - A Patchwork Of Cultures

The South Asians

South Asians

Strength In Numbers
South Asian populations grew more than any other Asian ethnic group in New York City during the last 15 years. The census confirmed their numbers more than doubled to 214,146 in 2000 from 88,247 in 1990.

Where They Live
South Asians are more scattered across Queens (and the rest of New York City, for that matter) than other ethnic groups. Queens has a larger concentration of South Asians than any other county in the country. The group is more scattered because they’re less likely to settle in receiving areas like Flushing, Elmhurst, Richmond Hill, and Jackson Heights. South Asians have moved to various parts of Queens, including Bayside and other Eastern parts like Jamaica and Jamaica Estates.

How They Got There
South Asians from India came in a first wave of immigration during the mid-1960s. They were predominately professional with high levels of education and knew the English language.

The second wave of immigrants in the 1980s and onwards marked a gradual widening of class and status, and included family and relatives of immigrants from the first wave.

South Asian immigrants come from countries like Bangladesh, India, Pakistan, Nepal, Sri Lanka, and Afghanistan. But the cultural group is not limited to these ethnicities, since “South Asian” peoples have generally not lived by exacting political boundaries, but rather a cultural assignment, and that can extend to the islands of Trinidad and Guyana as well part of Africa, where Indians were sent to be laborers over 150 years ago.

What Makes Them
Who They Are
Even though political tensions still exist between countries like Pakistan and India at home, national identities tend to become blurred once South Asians come to Queens.

Education, religion, and family, are three elements strongly emphasized in Indian culture.

South Asians maintain their culture and share it with the rest of Queens with such public celebrations as the annual Phagwah parade in Richmond Hill. Tribune photo by Ira Cohen

The Good Life
74th Street in Jackson Heights, the strip commonly known as Little India, is testament to the prosperity many South Asians have tasted over the last thirty years.
Ramesh Havani set up an ethnic clothing store there in 1976, and was one of only two businesses of the kind on the block. Now, it’s grown into the 4,000 square foot India Sari Palace, and takes its place among dozens of similar ethnically inspiring stores in the neighborhood.

The Not-So-Good-Life
National identities cause plenty of friction from time to between peoples of South Asian ethnicities back home. But it’s a problem Havani says is slowly dissolving on the streets of Jackson Heights.

“Politics which exist back home don’t exist here,” Havani says. “We have so many customers who are Pakistani, or from Bangladesh.”
He half-smiles.

“The beauty of the American system is that you’re at the mercy of the landlords,” he says, noting how tough it is to fight when everyone has bills to pay.

<PREV <--> NEXT>