Indians in the US of A

I agree with this article by Mr. Paramendra Bhagat.

I think the Indians are the most successful ethnic group in America is nothing to do with any kind of racial superiority. There are over a billion Indians back there. A few million of the brightest, most educated come over. I am surprised the crowd is not more successful than it is. Why so few Indians in the top positions of government and business, academia and media?

The number one factor is education. These are cream of the crop people for the most part.

It is not fair to compare the top 0.1% of the Indians with the average American. As in, it is not fair to all those Indians who have been left behind. The average Indian has to be compared to the average American, and the relationship between the disparity in income and the differing political infrastructures in the two places has to be tallied.

Talent is evenly distributed, what is not evenly distributed is opportunity.

We have to take pride in our achievements. But we also have to face the fact that we are not doing as well as we should. The glass walls and ceilings are still there. And the political battle has to be waged for equality. And we have to see there is a direct relationship between the political empowerment of the Indians in America and the plight of the Indians in India. We have to take active interest to better the lot of those in India.

Related Quote:

The greatest of faults, I should say, is to be conscious of none - Thomas Carlyle

Finally, excerpts from a nice article about Indians in Business Week.

Are Indians The Model Immigrants? 2000 ...the median household income of Indians was $70,708—far above the national median of $50,046 .... Indians own 50% of all economy lodging and 37% of all hotels in the U.S. .... in the late 1990s, close to 10% of technology startups in Silicon Valley were headed by Indians. ....Indian physicians working in almost every hospital as well as running small-town practices .....Indian journalists hold senior positions at major publications, and Indian faculty have gained senior appointments at most universities. Last month, Indra Nooyi, an Indian woman, was named CEO of PepsiCo .... 81.8% of Indian immigrants arrived in the U.S. after 1980. .....63.9% of Indians over 25 hold at least a bachelor's degree, compared with the national average of 24.4%.