Hindu Americans

In 1900, there were approximately 1,700 Hindu Americans living in the United States. By 1980, that number had grown to approximately 387,000; by 1997, the figure was approximately 1.1 million. By 2008, there were at least 2.3 million Hindu Americans in the United States, and most of them were of Indian or Indo-Caribbean origin. The Hindu American Foundation estimates that there were 1 million additional practicing Hindu Americans in 2013 who were not of Indian or Indo-Caribbean origin.

By 2011, there were 258 traditional Hindu temples in the United States, used by approximately 268,000 Hindu Americans. There were also 400 temples serving Hindu subtraditions, used by approximately 282,000. By 2011, there was at least one Hindu worship location in each U.S. state, mostly located in Indian American communities. This concentration is reflected in the fact that Hindu temples were only located in 13 percent of American counties in 2011. About one-third of all Hindu Americans live in concentrated groups in California, New Jersey, and New York.

In 2013, only around 8 percent of Hindu Americans were not proficient in English, which was lower than almost any other immigrant group in the United States. Only about 12 percent of Hindu Americans had not finished high school, and at least 64 percent had earned a college degree. At least 12 percent of Hindu Americans had earned an advanced degree, and some sources indicate that 48 percent do. These educational demographics place Hindu Americans far beyond any other demographic group in the United States for educational attainment. Hindu Americans also [Page 1072]enjoyed the highest rate of employment in highly skilled occupations.

Before the mid-20th century, Hindu Americans were isolated, and Hindu thought was rarely expressed as a part of public discourse. Those years saw mostly students, intellectual and religious visitors, and merchants in the United States. In the 19th century, translation of texts such as the Bhagavad Gita saw the introduction of Hinduism in the United States. Ralph Waldo Emerson hosted P. C. Mozoomdar, the first Indian teacher in the United States.

In 1893, Hindu leader Swami Vivekananda ventured to Chicago for the World's Parliament of Religions. This began a two-year lecture tour for the swami, during which time he also visited Boston, Detroit, and New York. Starting in 1902, the United States saw another two-year Hindu lecture tour, this time presented by Swami Rama Tirtha. His topic was the philosophy of Vedanta. In September 1907, intolerance and bigotry for Hindu Americans and Indian Americans raged into the Bellingham riots in Bellingham, Washington. The next major public showing of Hindu thought was not until 1920, when the International Congress of Religious Liberals featured Paramahansa Yogananda as the Indian delegate to the Boston event. The Asian Exclusion Act of 1924 stopped the growth of the Hindu American community.

In 1965, the Immigration and Nationality Services (INS) Act was passed. This was the first real chance for Hindu immigrants to come to the United States, bringing workers, families, and religious leaders. Many such Hindu religious leaders and teachers found an important place in the American counterculture of the 1960s, a radical movement springing from Hinduism that included groups such as the Swami Prabhupada's International Society for Krishna Consciousness. Other major Hindu thought leaders during this time included Maharishi Mahesh Yogi and Chinmoy.

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