The U.S. has seen waves of nativism throughout the years. Nativism is the ideology or political stance that suggests the interests and well-being of native-born citizens or long-established residents of a country are a priority over immigrants by advocating for or enacting strict immigration policy. Asians, Hispanics, and certain European groups have been restricted and heavily scrutinized through this nativist lens. This sentiment stayed with us and continues from the Chinese Exclusion Act to the Muslim Travel Ban.
South Asian History in the U.S.
South Asian immigrants began coming to the U.S. in larger numbers at the end of the 19th century, mostly to work in various agricultural industries. In 1917, the U.S. Congress barred migration from the “Asiatic Barred Zone,” which stretched from the Middle East to Southeast Asia and included the Indian subcontinent. A few years later, in 1923, the landmark case United States v. Bhagat Singh Thind ruled South Asians could not become naturalized or be granted citizenship. This stripped citizenship from those who had received it already. In 1946, the Luce-Celler Act, signed by President Truman, provided naturalization rights to both South Asians and Filipinos but still limited the number of migrants allowed into the country. Finally, the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965 banned immigration quotas by national origin. Immigration post-1965 allowed continued immigration from South Asia. From 1980 to 2021, the Indian immigrant population alone grew by over two million.
Despite discrimination, these immigrants found success. The median income of households led by an Indian immigrant in 2021 was $150,000, among the highest for any ethnicity in the U.S. As the tech industry continued to expand, employers took advantage of visas, particularly the H1-B. The H1-B visa allowed employers to petition for highly educated foreign professionals to temporarily come to the U.S. and work in specialty occupations. Over 70 percent of H1-B visa holders today are Indian citizens. Though the population of South Asians had been growing, certain events seemed to push nativists over the line and raise their voices against this change. Demographic shifts like these have been shown to make certain Americans feel uncomfortable because as nativists they believe the first immigrants, who were Western European, must remain in control.
Anti-South Asian Backlash
The appointment of Sriram Krishnan as advisor to A.I. in the Trump Administration and Vivek Ramaswamy’s comments about the American workforce lacking the relevant education have been said to have sparked a recent increase in online hate against South Asians. This has led to an increase in studies and reports recently, such as the report from the Center for the Study of Organized Hate titled Anti-Indian Hate on X: How the platform Amplifies Racism and Xenophobia. Stop AAPI Hate also released a report showing a dramatic increase in anti-Asian hate online, especially toward South Asians, between November 2024 and January 2025. This anti-South Asian rhetoric even reached higher levels of government in the U.S. Earlier this year the Vice President, J.D. Vance, excused the racist tweets of an employee of the Department of Government Efficiency detailing his detest of interracial marriage and calling to “normalize Indian hate.” Vance said, “I obviously disagree with some of Elez’s posts, but I don’t think stupid social media activity should ruin a kid’s life.” In addition, hatred toward South Asian immigrants has been more apparent recently in countries like the U.K., Ireland, Canada, and Australia; sometimes escalating to physical violence. This violence has happened alongside increased anti-immigrant and anti-South Asian sentiment in the commonwealth and worldwide.
Model Minority
South Asians have historically been identified in literature surrounding race to be just below Whites and above other minorities in the U.S. The term “model minority” was coined by sociologist William Petersen in 1966 in an article about Japanese-Americans, but this began to be used for all Asians. A model minority is an ethnic group that is more academically, economically, and socially successful than other racial minority groups (UITAC). There are explanations behind why South Asian and Asian immigrants and their descendants, more broadly, tend to be highly educated in the U.S. After 1965, the U.S. hyper-selected from certain Asian immigrant groups, including Indians, meaning that they selected only immigrants who possessed a bachelor’s degree or above. This meant that the U.S. received immigrants from places like India and other Asian nations who were more educated compared to the majority of people in their countries of origin. This gave a skewed impression of Asians; in other words, people in America came to the conclusion that Asians are more educated than other minority groups. Though obviously flawed, this model minority myth upholds anti-Black and anti-Latino prejudice by showing that some minorities find success in the U.S. The writer Frank Chin summed this up well when he wrote about Asian Americans in the 1970s, “Whites love us because we’re not Black.” This points the finger back at the culture or work ethic of minority groups being the issue and does not address systemic inequality and past wrongs against other minorities historically in the U.S. The model minority myth suggests there are no true hurdles to clear as far as discrimination in this country. Those who argue in favor of Asian Americans being an exceptional group despite discrimination seem to forget that roadblocks had to be removed in order for them to become citizens, attain success or education, and find the American Dream.
As we have seen in this country, discrimination persists against South Asians despite their doing all the things an American must do to be successful. Although success in the way of money and material things came to some, South Asians are a diverse group facing challenges and with different levels of education and income. South Asians are not a monolith, and there are poor Asians, as there are poor people of any ethnicity. A push towards a racial hierarchy by nativist European Americans may continue to evolve as we creep closer to the year where they become the minority in this country. As the U.S. government is responsible for the H1-B program and immigration in general, then it would behoove those complaining about immigrants finding jobs legally to then take it up with the people at the top. In addition, the racial caste that exists in this country according to numerous scholars (Wilkerson, 2020; Cox, 1948; Davis, Gardner & Gardner, 1941), exists because it was placed there by those in power. If it was made, it can be undone.
