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- Atlanta
is home to 37,162 individuals who identified themselves in the
2000 Census as Asian Indians or Indian-Americans. These are first-
and second-generation immigrants and others whose ancestors migrated
to the US from India.
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More than one out of every 10 individuals in the US is foreign-born,
a total of 28.4 million people.
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According to the 2000 Census, 210,000 individuals live in the
Atlanta metro area who were born outside of the US. The foreign-born
comprise 14% of the residents in Cobb County and 16% in Gwinnett
and DeKalb. (2000 census)
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The 2000 Census reported an Indian-American population nationwide
of 1.7 million. The estimate for 1970 was less than 40,000. The
Indian-American population doubled between the 1980 Census and
the 1990 Census and doubled again by the year 2000.
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A dozen US cities, including New York, Los Angeles, Dallas, and
Houston hold annual South Asian beauty pageants.
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The largest concentration of South Asian immigrants is located
in California, followed by New York, New Jersey, Illinois, Texas,
Florida, and DC.
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India is a vast country with a highly diverse population. Over
500 distinct languages are spoken. Five major religions are practiced:
Hinduism, Islam, Christianity, Sikhism and Jainism. The four main
characters in Miss India Georgia mirror this diversity, representing
three of India's religions, and several different regions.
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Indian-Americans are multi-lingual: Most speak more than one Indian
language. Of Indian-Americans, 79% speak English fluently. At
the same time, 70% speak a language other than English at home
at least part of the time.
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The Indian-American community is one of the most highly-educated
in the US: 65% of Indian-Americans have completed college; 40%
hold an MA, PhD, or other professional degree.
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Indian-Americans make up less than 1 per cent of the US population
but account for well over 5 per cent of US scientists, engineers,
and software specialists.
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No group has a higher per capita income than Indian-Americans.
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Not all immigrants come from the Indian middle-class. Particularly
among recent arrivals, many are the poorer relatives of better-educated
individuals who came to the US in earlier years. Throughout the
world, there is an immense Indian diaspora, with millions of Indians
living overseas in Africa, Europe, Asia, and elsewhere. Misty,
one of the characters in Miss India Georgia, comes from a Indian
family that lived in Trinidad for many generations before emigrating
to the US. [Nearly 50% of the inhabitants of Trinidad are of Indian
descent.] Many Indians from Trinidad and other outposts of the
Indian diaspora come from families of rural fieldworkers, such
as Misty's mother, Sylvia, who lived in a mud hut throughout her
childhood in Trinidad.
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["South
Asia" = Bangladesh, Bhutan, Burma, India, Nepal, Pakistan, Sri
Lanka]
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