Ethnic groups in Houston

A map of racial/ethnic distribution in the City of Houston and Greater Houston, 2010 U.S. Census - Each dot represents 25 people. Red dots represent White people, orange dots represent Hispanic people, blue dots represent Black people, green dots represent Asian people, and gray dots represent other people

Houston is a diverse and international city, in part because of its many academic institutions and strong biomedical, energy, manufacturing and aerospace industries. According to the U.S. Census 2000, the racial makeup of the city was 49.3% White (including Hispanic or Latino), 25.3% Black or African American, 0.4% Native American, 5.3% Asian, 0.1&% Pacific Islander, 16.5% from other races, and 3.2% from two or more races. 37% of the population was Hispanic or Latino of any race.

The Daily Mail stated, in regards to the 2000 census data, that the racial and ethnic diversity in Houston and Greater Houston increases further from the center of the city.[1]

Hispanics

The Supermercado de Walmart store in the Spring Branch area is designed to accommodate Hispanic customers

The Hispanic population in Houston is increasing as more immigrants from Latin American countries look for work in the area. As of 2006 the city has the third-largest Hispanic population in the United States. As of the same year Karl Eschbach, a University of Texas Medical Branch demographer, said that the best possible estimate for the number of illegal aliens in the Houston area was about 400,000.[2] This influx of immigrants is partially responsible for Houston having a population younger than the national average.

As of 2011, the city is 44% Hispanic. As of 2011, of the city's U.S. citizens that are Hispanic, half are at voting age or older. Many Hispanics in Houston are not U.S. citizens, especially Hispanics living in Gulfton and Spring Branch. As a result, Hispanics have proportionally less representation in the municipal government than other ethnic groups. As of April 2011 two of the Houston City Council members are Hispanic, making up 18% of the council.[3]

History of Hispanics

In the early 1980s there were an estimated 80,000 illegal immigrants from Mexico, along with 300,000 native Hispanics.[4]

In 1985, Harris County had about 500,000 Hispanics. Eschbach said that, historically, Hispanics resided in specific neighborhoods of Houston, such as Denver Harbor, the Houston Heights, Magnolia Park, and the Northside. Between 1985 and 2005, the county's Hispanic population tripled, with Hispanics making up about 40% of the county's residents. In most communities inside and outside of Beltway 8, Hispanics became the predominant ethnic group. Some communities in Greater Houston which still do not have Hispanics as the predominant ethnic group include expensive non-Hispanic white communities including Memorial, Uptown, and West University Place; and historically African-American neighborhoods located south and northeast of Downtown Houston. Eschbach said, "But even these core black and white neighborhoods are experiencing Hispanic inroads. Today, Hispanics live everywhere."[5]

In 1990, there were 192,220 foreign-born Hispanic residents of Houston, with 132,596, or 69%, being Mexican immigrants. 39,289 were from Central America, 12,250 were from South America, and 8,085 were from the Caribbean.[6] The 1990 U.S. Census stated that, of the adult Houstonians who use bicycles to get to work, 32% are Hispanic. In 1997, Hispanic men tended to use bicycles, while, due to Latin American social customs, Hispanic women tended to walk, use public buses, or stay in their houses.[7]

In 1991, most Hispanic-owned businesses in Greater Houston involved industries with lower profits, such as construction, distribution, and services. The largest Hispanic-owned business was RioStar Corp., which operated Ninfa's. The business generating the highest number of sales was Solvents & Chemicals and Packaging Services of Pearland, Texas.[8]

In 1995 about 100,000 immigrants from Central America resided in Houston.[9] As of 2001, Hispanics were almost 38% of Houston's population and 8% of the city's voting electorate. As of the same year, most Hispanics and Latinos elected to public office in Houston are Mexican Americans who are members of the Democratic Party. Most Hispanics and Latinos in public office are politically liberal. Lori Rodriguez of the Houston Chronicle said in 2001 that "the top tier of Latino politicos mainly walk in lock step."[10] According to Richard Murray, a political scientist of the Center for Public Policy of Rice University, the Hispanic middle class of 2001 is larger than in previous years, and that Hispanic voters are present in every Houston voting precinct, including River Oaks and Tanglewood.[10]

In 2001 Orlando Sanchez made a bid to become Mayor of Houston. Lori Rodriguez of the Houston Chronicle said that this was the first well-funded and focused campaign for Houston mayor by a Hispanic candidate. Sanchez, a Cuban American, was a member of the Republican Party and politically conservative.[10]

Around 2002 some Hispanics in Houston became converts to Islam. They said that many people mistake them to be of Pakistani or Middle Eastern origin because they are Muslim.[11]

In a period before 2005, many Hispanic and Latino Americans had moved into traditional African American neighborhoods. Between 1990 and 2000, the numbers of Hispanic and Latino Americans in Kashmere Gardens, South Park, Sunnyside, and the Third Ward increased.[12] After Hurricane Katrina hit New Orleans in 2005, many ethnic Hondurans moved to Houston.[13]

In 2007 most of the Hispanic and Latino political power was Mexican American, aligned with the Democratic Party, and concentrated in eastern Houston. Many of the most vocal Hispanic and Latino leaders who participated in immigration rallies were of Central American origin and originated from Southwest Houston.[14]

By 2011 the new city council District J was organized to reflect changing demographics and better represent Hispanics in Houston .[15]

Mexicans

Our Lady of Guadalupe Catholic Church

When Houston was first settled, it had relatively few Mexican Americans.[16] Mexican migration into Houston increased with the expansion of the railroad system and the installation of Porfirio Díaz as the President of Mexico.[17] In the early 20th century the population further increased due to the 1910 Mexican Revolution, the use of enganchadores (labor agents), unemployment of Mexican-Americans in rural areas, a labor shortage during World War I. and the lack of immigration restrictions during the 1920s.[18]

In the book Ethnicity in the Sunbelt: A History of Mexican Americans in Houston, author Arnoldo De León described the relationship between Houston Mexican-Americans and newly arrived immigrants from Mexico. De León said that the traditional residents disliked how they believed that the new immigrants were giving the Mexican-American community in Houston a bad reputation but added that that, at the same time, the new immigrants kept the entire community in touch with the Mexican community.[19]

Other Hispanics

Houston is 44% Hispanic/Latino, of which 31% is Mexican and 13% is all other Hispanics, the highest proportion of non-Mexican Hispanics of all major Texas cities. Though a large majority of Hispanics are from Mexico, there are increasingly significant number of Hispanics from numerous other countries, including El Salvador, Puerto Rico, Honduras, Guatemala, Cuba, and Nicaragua, among others, as well as both Mexicans and non-Mexican Hispanics moving to Houston from other US states.[20]

Houston office of TACA Airlines in Gulfton

In 1990, there were 39,289 immigrants from Central America in Houston.[6] At that time Southwest Houston developed infrastructure that catered to Central Americans.[21] The combined Central American population is close to about 4% of Houston's population, particularly from the northern portion of Central America like Salvadoran and Guatemalan communities.

Cubans

Since the mid-1990s changes in immigration from Cuba to the United States occurred due to the wet feet, dry feet policy and other policy changes; many Cubans immigrated through Mexico and people who did not have relatives in Miami settled in Houston; this caused an expansion of Houston's Cuban American community.[22] In 2013 Peter Stranges, the supervisor of refugee services of the Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston said that often Cuban refugees arrive with no possessions other than immigration documents and the clothes they are wearing.[23]

From May 2012 to February 17, 2013, counselors at the refugee services office of the Galveston-Houston Catholic charities assisted 450 Cuban immigrants coming to the Houston area. Stranges said "We used to see two or three Cubans a week, and we've started seeing groups of 25 or 30 at a time and there were weeks when we have 60 border crossers coming to our offices. It's unprecedented. What's challenging is we don't want to turn down anyone who comes to our doors, so we've really scrambled to come up with a team to handle this surge."[23]

Asians

Ranchester Police Storefront in Chinatown - The Chinese name is the Chinatown Police Station (中國城警察局 Zhōngguóchéng Jǐngchájú)

Houston also has large populations of immigrants from Asia. In addition, the city has the largest Vietnamese American population in Texas and third-largest in the United States.[24][25]

In 1910 30 Asians lived in Houston. 20 were Japanese and 10 were Chinese.[26] The Chinese were the only ethnic group with a significant settlement pattern in Houston until the 1970s. The lack of Asian immigration in Greater Houston was due to historical restrictions on Asian Americans. According to the 1980 U.S. census, 484 Chinese immigrants currently living in the area had lived there prior to 1950, of twelve Asian nationalities other than Chinese listed by the census for the Houston area, there were fewer than 100 immigrants who had settled before 1950. The 1965 Immigration Act, which had ended the restrictions, allowed an increase in Chinese Americans. Chinese residents. The number increased to 121 by the start of World War II. During the war, many Chinese from southern states migrated to take advantage of the economy and the population increased by more than twice its size.[27]

In the 1970s large-scale Asian immigration to Houston began. In 1980 48,000 Asians lived in Greater Houston. The amount of Asian immigration increased in the 1980s. In 1990 90,000 Asian immigrants lived in Harris County, and 48,000 Asians lived in Greater Houston.[28] As of 1990 the largest two Asian immigrant groups to Houston were the Chinese and the Vietnamese,[29] making up 46% of all Asian immigrants,[30] with 15,568 Vietnamese and 10,817 of Chinese from China, Hong Kong, and Taiwan. The others were 7,044 Indians, 4,807 Filipinos, 3,249 Koreans, 2,419 Iranians, 2,411 Pakistanis, 1,950 Japanese, 1,489 Lebanese, and 1,146 Cambodians.[28]

In the 1990s the Asian immigration rates exceeded those of Hispanics. A U.S. Census survey conducted in 1997 stated that in Harris County and Fort Bend County, there were 202,685 Asians combined.[28] In 1998 Betty Ann Bowser, a reporter for PBS Newshour, said that many Southeast Asians came to Houston because "its hot humid climate reminded them of home."[31]

According to a 2002 survey of 500 Asian Americans in Harris County overseen by Stephen Klineberg, a professor at Rice University, Asian immigrants have substantially lower household income than Anglo residents and other immigrant groups, while they have higher levels of education.[32]

In 2007 Houston had 16,000 Asian American businesses. A 2006 U.S. Census Bureau report stated that the annual revenues of those businesses totaled to $5.5 billion ($6434219214.26 in today's money).[33]

Vietnamese

Vietnamese culture memorial at Baldwin Park in Midtown

In 2005 Greater Houston had 32,000 Vietnamese and Vietnamese Americans, making it the second largest Vietnamese American community in the United States after that of San Jose, California.[34]

Chinese

According to the American Community Survey, as of 2013, Greater Houston (Houston-Sugar Land-Baytown metropolitan area) has 72,320 residents of Chinese origin.[35]

South Asians

Mahatma Gandhi District in Houston

As of the 2010 U.S. Census, if the Indian American and Pakistani American populations are combined, there are 50,045 of them in Harris County, together making up 17.9% of the Asians in Harris County and being the second largest Asian ethnic group in Harris County. The combined group was the largest Asian ethnic group in Fort Bend County, making up 31% of the Asians there, and the largest Asian ethnic group in Montgomery County.[36]

In 1983 Allison Cook of the Texas Monthly stated that "Some estimates put the number of Indians and Pakistanis in Houston as high as 25,000."[37]

In 1990 there were a combined 21,191 Indian and Pakistani descent people in Harris County, making up 19.3% of the county's Asians and at the time being the third largest Asian ethnic group. In 2000 there were 35,971 members of the combined group in Harris County, making up 18.6% of the county's Asians and now being the second largest Asian ethnic group in the county. From 2000 to 2010 the combined group in Harris County increased by 39%.[36]

Half a dozen Indian American and Pakistani American newspapers are offered in stores and restaurants. The publications include India Herald and the Voice of Asia. The city has Masala Radio, a South Asian radio station. Indian singers often make tour stops in Houston. The Bollywood 6 movie theater on Texas State Highway 6 plays Indian films. The Houston area has Indian dance schools, including the Abhinaya School of Performing Arts and the Shri Natraj School of Dance.[38]

Of the Zoroastrian groups in Houston, As of 2000, Parsi were one of the two main Zoroastrian groups. As of that year the total number of Iranians of all religions in Houston is, on a 10 to 1 basis, larger than the total Parsi population.[39] As of 2000 the Zoroastrian Association of Houston (ZAH) is majority Parsi. Rustomji wrote that because of that and the historic tensions between the Parsi and Iranian groups, the Iranians in Houston did not become full members of the ZAH. Rustomji stated that Iranian Zoroastrians "attend religious functions sporadically and remain tentative about their ability to fully integrate, culturally and religiously, with Parsis."[39]

Asian Indians

Harris County had almost 36,000 Indian Americans as of the 2000 Census. The population had a $53,000 ($72581.84 in today's money) median yearly household income, $11,000 ($15064.15 in today's money) more than the county average. Almost 65% of the Indian Americans in Harris County had university and college degrees, compared to 18% of all of the Harris County population. Indian Americans in Fort Bend County, as of the same census, numbered at almost 13,000 and had a median annual income of $84,000 ($115035.36 in today's money). 62% of Indian Americans in Fort Bend County had university and college degrees, compared to 25% of all residents of Fort Bend County. An estimate from the 2009 American Community Survey stated that Harris County had 46,125 Indian Americans and that Fort Bend County had 25,104 Indian Americans. Katharine Shilcutt of the Houston Press said that the high education and income levels of Indian Americans caused businesses in the Mahatma Gandhi District, an Indian American ethnic enclave in Houston, to thrive.[40]

As of 2007, the median income of Indians in Houston was $50,250.[41]

As of 2012 the majority of the city's Sikhs originate from the portion of Punjab in India.[42]

As of 2007 there were over 24 Indian-American-oriented publications. As of that year, most Indian-American newspapers in Houston are in English. Some smaller newspapers are in Indian languages such as Hindi and Gujarati.[41]

The Indo-American News, a newspaper owned by K.L. Sindwani, is distributed to fifty locations in Southwest Houston and has a 5,000 copy-per-week print rate. As of 2007 each issue has 44 pages. Sindwani established it in 1982; at the time he was the only employee and the each issue had eight pages.[41]

The self-published novel An Indian in Cowboy Country was written by Indian immigrant Pradeep Anand, who works as an engineer and lives in Sugar Land.[43]

Pakistanis

In 2007 the Pakistani-American Association of Greater Houston (PAGH) stated that about 60,000 people of Pakistani origin lived in Greater Houston and that many of them lived in Southwest Houston.[44] As of 2000, over 70% of the Muslims in Houston are Pakistani.[45]

Bangladeshis

The Bangladesh Association, Houston (BAH, Bengali: বাংলাদেশ এসোসিয়েশন, হিউস্টন[46])Bangladesh Students Association at the University of Houston, and Bangladesh Society of Greater Houston . are the Bangladeshi groups in the city.[47]

In 1971 the Bangladeshi American community in Greater Houston consisted of about 10 university students; 1971 was the year when Bangladesh seceded from Pakistan. As of 2011 the Bangladeshi American population of Greater Houston includes over 10,000 people. The Bangladesh Association bought 4 acres (1.6 ha) of land in southwestern unincorporated Harris County in 2001. By 2011 the association announced plans to develop the $2.5 million ($2620931.95 in today's money) facility Bangladeshi American Center, which will include auditoriums, classrooms, a playground, and an outdoor sports complex. . [48] The first donor conference was held at the Stafford Civic Center in Stafford.In 2012, Bangladeshi Students Association at the University of Houston was resurrected after a ten year hiatus. This organization was first formed in the 70's soon after the independence of Bangladesh in 1971. UH BSA serves as the link between the 2nd generation of Bangladeshis and the older generation[49]

Filipinos

As of the 2010 U.S. Census there were 22,575 ethnic Filipinos in Harris County, making up 8.1% of the county's Asian population. In 1990 there were 10,502 ethnic Filipinos in the county, making up 9.6% of the county's Asian population. In 2000 this had increased to 15,576, making up 8.1% of the county's Asian population. The Filipino population increased by 45% from 2000 to 2010.[36]

Koreans

As of the 2010 U.S. Census there were 11,813 ethnic Koreans in Harris County, making up 4.2% of the county's Asian population. In 1990 there were 6,571 ethnic Koreans, making up 6% of the county's Asian population. In 2000 this figure had increased to 8,764, making up 4.5% of the county's Asian population. The number of Koreans increased by 35% from 2000 to 2010.[36]

Spring Branch has a large ethnic Korean population.[50]

Japanese

As of the 2010 U.S. Census, there were 3,566 people of Japanese descent in Harris County, making up 1.3% of the Asians in the county. In 1990 there were 3,425 ethnic Japanese in the county, making up 3.1% of the county's Asians, and in 2000 there were 3,574 ethnic Japanese in the county, making up 1.9% of the county's Asians.[36]

Other Asian ethnic groups

In addition Houston has populations of Asians from other countries in Southeast Asia and East Asia. This includes Burma, Cambodia, Indonesia, and Thailand. In 2010 there were 40,684 Asians from other countries living in Harris County, making up 14.5% of the Asians there.[36]

In 1990 there were 12,114 Asians from other countries in Harris County, making up 11% of the county's Asian population. In 2000 the number had increased to 20,579, making up 10.7% of the county's Asian population. The other Asian population of Harris County increased by almost 100% from 2000 to 2010.[36]

As of 2004 Houston had the fifth largest Indonesian population in the United States; this helps sustain the Consulate-General of Indonesia, Houston.[51]

Over the three years leading to 2009, Houston took about 2,200 Burmese.[52]

African-Americans

African American Library at the Gregory School, located in the Fourth Ward in Houston

Historically Houston has always had a significant African-American population,[26] as this area of the state had plantation agriculture dependent on slaves. In 1860 nearby Fort Bend County had a population with twice as many black slaves as white residents, and was one of six majority-black counties statewide. From the 1870s to the 1890s, black people were almost 40% of Houston's population.[26] Before being effectively disfranchised by imposition of a poll tax in 1902, they were politically active and strongly supported the Republican Party. Between 1910 and 1970, the black population ranged from 21% to 32.7%,[26] and were virtually without political representation until after 1965 and passage of the federal Voting Rights Act, which enforced their constitutional rights of suffrage.

In 1970, 90% of the black people in Houston lived in mostly African-American neighborhoods. With increasing diversity, by 1980 this decreased to 82%.[53]

African immigrants

A significant number of African immigrants have made the Houston area home.[54] As of 2003 Houston does not have as many African immigrants as Hispanic and Asian immigrants. The African immigrants in Houston have higher education levels than other immigrant groups and US-born whites. According to Stephen Klineberg, a sociology professor at Rice University, as of 2003, almost 35% of African immigrants have university degrees, and 28% of African immigrants have postgraduate degrees. In the Houston area, 28% of US-born Whites have university degrees, and 16% have postgraduate degrees.[55] In 2012, the total trade between Houston and Africa was $19.7 billion. Houston is Africa's largest U.S. trade partner.[56]

Nigerians

Charles W. Corey of the U.S. Department of State said that it has been estimated that Greater Houston has the largest Nigerian expatriate population in the United States. [54] An estimated 150,000 Nigerian Americans live in Houston.[57] Many Nigerian Americans choose Houston over other American destinations due to its warmer climate and the ease of establishing businesses.[55] Until Continental Airlines began nonstop flights to Lagos from George Bush Intercontinental Airport in November 2011, many Nigerians had to fly through Europe to travel between Texas and Nigeria.[58] Jenalia Moreno of the Houston Chronicle said that the Nigerian community and the energy companies in Houston have worked for a long time to get a flight to Nigeria from this city.[59] Nigerian students have a noticeable presence at universities in the Houston metropolitan area.[60]

Ethiopians

Mesfin Genanaw, a Houston Community College teacher who was one of the individuals who assisted with the building of the area Ethiopian Orthodox church, stated in a 2003 Houston Chronicle article that there are an estimated 5,000 Ethiopians in Greater Houston.[61]

Houston's Ethiopian Orthodox church is the Debre Selam Medhanealem Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahdo Church (Amharic: ደብረ ሰላም መድኃኔዓለም የኢትዮጵያ ኦርቶዶክስ ተዋሕዶ ቤተ ክርስቲያን? Debre Selam MedhaneAlem YeItyopphya Ortodoks Tewahedo Bete Kristiyan; the name approximately means "Sanctuary of Peace and the Savior"). Prior to the construction of the church, those of the Ethiopian Orthodox faith worshiped at Coptic Orthodox churches. Genanaw, stated that in 1992 20 Ethiopian women who were attending a Coptic church planned the establishment of an Ethiopian church. In 1993 the group purchased a 2.5-acre (1.0 ha) site and a tent, and conducted church services in a tent. After fundraisers were held, in 1995 construction of the permanent church started, and the chuirch later obtained an additional 5 acres (2.0 ha) of land.[61]

Whites

See also: German Texan
The historic St. Peter's United Church, founded by German settlers in Spring Branch

White Americans of northern and western European origin, particularly those of German and British origins, founded the City of Houston. Roberto R. Treviño, author of The Church in the Barrio: Mexican American Ethno-Catholicism in Houston, said that German Americans "historically played a central role in Houston, far outnumbering other whites such as the British, Irish, Canadians, French, Czechs, Poles, and Scandinavian groups who historically have comprised a smaller part of the city's ethnic mosaic."[26] German immigrants arrived in number following the revolutions of 1848 in the German states; they tended to oppose slavery and supported the Republican Party through the Reconstruction era. In 1910 members of White American groups who founded Houston numerically outnumbered other ethnic groups who had arrived in Houston.[26] German settlers had settled Spring Branch in the mid-1800s, a community that later become a part of Houston,[62]

By the 1970s, white flight occurred in Houston as wealthier people moved to new housing in suburbs and worked to avoid economic and racial integration of schools.[63] The city government used annexation as a strategy to mitigate White flight by forcefully annexing areas where White Americans moved.[64] Between the 1970-1971 and the 1971-1972 school years, enrollment at the Houston Independent School District decreased by 16,000. Of that number, 700 were African Americans.[63]

An analysis of the 2000 U.S. Census of the University of Houston Center for Public Policy by demographers Max Beauregard and Karl Eschbach said that white flight continued to occur in the 1990s. In the decade prior to the 2000 U.S. Census, White Americans left communities within Houston such as Alief, Aldine, Fondren Southwest, Gulfton, and Sharpstown. Other communities in Houston that lost large numbers of Whites by the 2000 census include Inwood Forest, Northline, Northside, and Spring Branch. Communities in other parts of Greater Houston that lost large numbers of Whites include Channelview, Cloverleaf, Galena Park, and Pasadena. Lori Rodriguez said, regarding the movement of white people in Greater Houston leading up to the year 2000, "Picture a stone dropped on the urban core and ripples of people spreading from within the Loop to the second-ring suburbs between the Loop and Beltway 8; and then beyond, to the outer-ring settlements and even unincorporated perimeter; Kingwood, The Woodlands, FM 1960."[65]

In the period between the 1990 and 2000 censuses, the largest growth of non-Hispanic White Americans within Greater Houston occurred in mostly-White communities such as Clear Lake City, Kingwood, northwest Harris County, the FM 1960 corridor, and The Woodlands.[65]

European residents and immigrants

Norway House, which houses the Consulate-General of Norway in Houston

In the late 19th and early 20th century, Houston received numerous immigrants from Eastern and Southern Europe. As in other southern cities, Houston's European immigrants were "overflow" from cities in the eastern seaboard and the Midwestern United States, which received larger numbers of Eastern and Southern Europeans. In 1910, Houston had groups of Austro-Hungarians, Greeks, Italians, Russians, and Europeans from other populations. Those groups were smaller than Houston's group of Mexican-Americans. By 1930, Houston had 8,339 first and-second generation Eastern and Southern European people in Houston. This was almost half of the size of Houston's Mexican American population.[26]

Lasse Sigurd Seim, the consul general of the Norwegian Consulate General, Houston, described the estimated 5,000–6,000 Norwegians in the Houston area around 2008 as the largest concentration of ethnic Norwegians outside of Scandinavia. Jenalia Moreno of the Houston Chronicle said during that year that the influx of Norwegians into Greater Houston was "relatively new."[66] Seim said that in the late 1800s, of all of the ports in the United States, with the exception of Ellis Island in New York City, more Norwegians arrived at the port of Galveston than any other port. Many of the Norwegians who were processed through Galveston migrated to Minnesota and other areas in the Midwestern United States.[66]

In a 2004 Houston Chronicle article, Nikolai V. Sofinskiy, the first consul general of the Consulate-General of Russia in Houston, stated that the Houston area had around 40,000 Russian speakers.[67]

Annette Baird of the Houston Chronicle said that, as of December 2000, the number of British citizens in Greater Houston was estimated to be over 40,000. Grainne O'Reilly-Askew, the first headmistress of the British School of Houston, said that before the school was established, British companies encountered difficulty in convincing their executives to relocate to Greater Houston, since the area previously did not have a school using the British educational system.[68] John Major, the former Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, attended the school's official opening.[69]

Greeks

Annunciation Orthodox Church in Montrose, Houston

The first recorded ethnic Greeks in Houston, listed in the Houston City Directory of 1889-1890, were George and Peter Poleminacos. Men who worked manual labor were Houston's first Greek residents, with their arrival in 1889. The first Greek woman to arrive was Kalliope Vlahos, and since her 1903 arrival Greek women and children began settling Houston.[70] Many of the earliest settlers planned to make money in the U.S. and then return to their homelands. Several Greeks became businessowners;[71] historically many Greeks operated cafes and sweets shops in Downtown Houston.[72]

Iranians/Persians

Iranian businesses along Hillcroft Avenue

As of 1994, over 50,000 ethnic Iranians live in Houston. As of that year, 12 city blocks along Hillcroft Avenue from Westheimer Road to a point just south of Westpark contain a Persian business district including shops and restaurants. Allison Cook of the Houston Press referred to the area as "Little Persia".[73]

As of 1990 most Iranians/Persians in Houston are not religious.[74]

Of the Zoroastrian groups in Houston, As of 2000, Iranians were one of the two main Zoroastrian groups. As of that year the total number of Iranians in Houston of all religions is, on a 10 to 1 basis, larger than the total Parsi population.[39]

Rustomji wrote that as of 2000, because of that and the historic tensions between the Parsi and Iranian groups, the Iranians in Houston did not become full members of the Zoroastrian Association of Houston (ZAH), which was majority Parsi. Rustomji stated that Iranian Zoroastrians "attend religious functions sporadically and remain tentative about their ability to fully integrate, culturally and religiously, with Parsis."[39] In 1996 the Iranian population had its largest attendance at a ZAH event when it attended Jashne-e-Sade, an event the community created for ZAH. By 2000 some Muslim Iranians who were opposed to fundamentalism in the mosques began attending Zoroastrian events. Rustomji wrote in 2000 that between 2000 and 2005, Iranians were expected to make up a greater proportion of ZAH.[39]

As of 2006 most Bahá'í Center members are Persians.[75] As of 2010 many Houston Bahá'í are refugees from Iran. In Iran many of their relatives and parents were arrested and/or executed.[76]

Arabs

Badr stated that as of 2000, about 10% of the Islamic Society of Greater Houston (ISGH) consists of Arabs. She added that the percentage of Arabs in Houston's Muslim population is estimated by some to be "as high as 30%."[77] According to Badr, from 1990 to 2000 many Arabs began to create their own mosques and Islamic schools separate from the ISGH due to disagreements over various issues including the language of the Friday sermons, the operations of Sunday schools and full-time schools, and the monetary distribution and collection.[77]

Ethnoreligious groups

Jews

The current Congregation Beth Israel

As of around 1987 about 42,000 Jews lived in Greater Houston.[78] In 2008 Irving N. Rothman, author of The Barber in Modern Jewish Culture: A Genre of People, Places, and Things, with Illustrations, wrote that Houston "has a scattered Jewish populace and not a large enough population of Jews to dominate any single neighborhood" and that the city's "hub of Jewish life" is the Meyerland community.[79]

Copts

St. Mark Coptic Orthodox Church, Bellaire

Houston is within the Coptic Orthodox Diocese of the Southern United States.

As of 2004, there were three Coptic Orthodox churches in Houston: St. Mark Coptic Orthodox Church in Bellaire, the St. Mary and Archangel Michael Church in northwest Harris County, and the Archangel Raphael Coptic Orthodox Church in Clear Lake City. The St. Mary and Archangel Michael church began church services on July 25, 2004, had 200 families in August of that year, and had a cost of $2.5 million.[80] The St. Mary and Archangel Michael church is the largest Copt church in the Houston area.[81]

In the late 1960s there were far fewer Coptic families. Every month, a priest from Los Angeles flew to Houston and started a mass in a borrowed Orthodox church or in a private house.[80] From 1968 to 2006 over 600 Copt families moved to Houston. Due to sectarian strife against Copts, by 2006 the membership of Copt churches in Houston was growing.[81]

In 2006 Gregory Katz of the Houston Chronicle stated that partly because many Copt church leaders are accustomed to anti-Copt attitudes in Egypt, those who come to Houston are not accustomed to speaking freely about their religious beliefs and therefore "do not mingle easily with the rest of the large Christian community in the Houston area".[81]

After the 2011 Alexandria bombing, Houston Coptic churches cancelled their Coptic Christmas services.[82]

Parsis

Of the Zoroastrian groups in Houston, As of 2000, Parsi were one of the two main Zoroastrian groups. As of that year the total number of Iranians of all religions in Houston is, on a 10 to 1 basis, larger than the total Parsi population.[39] As of 2000 the Zoroastrian Association of Houston (ZAH) is majority Parsi. Rustomji wrote that because of that and the historic tensions between the Parsi and Iranian groups, the Iranians in Houston did not become full members of the ZAH. Rustomji stated that Iranian Zoroastrians "attend religious functions sporadically and remain tentative about their ability to fully integrate, culturally and religiously, with Parsis."[39]

Sikhs

In 2012 the Sikh National Center stated that the city of Houston has 7,000 to 10,000 Sikhs. The Gurdwara Guru Teg Bahadur Sahib Ji is a Sikh temple in Houston,[83] located off of Fairbanks North Houston. As of 2012 the majority of the city's Sikhs originate from the portion of Punjab in India.[84]

Maronites

As of 2008 Our Lady of the Cedars Maronite Catholic Church is Houston's only Maronite Church. That year, Christine Dow, a spokesperson for the church, stated that there were about 500 families who were members, and that the community, since the 1990s, had increased.[85] Richard Vara of the Houston Chronicle wrote that in 1991 there had "only a handful of registered families" in the Houston Maronite church.[86]

References

Notes

  1. ↑ Gardner, David. "Revealed: The maps that show the racial breakdown of America’s biggest cities." Daily Mail. September 26, 2010. Retrieved on November 12, 2011.
  2. ↑ Hegstrom, Edward. Shadows cloaking immigrants prevent accurate count. Houston Chronicle (February 21, 2006).
  3. ↑ Casey, Rick. "City Hall Latino win may end up as a loss instead." Houston Chronicle. April 28, 2011. Retrieved on June 6, 2011.
  4. ↑ Rodriguez, Nestor, "Undocumented Central Americans in Houston: Diverse Populations," p. 4.
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  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 Rodriguez, Nestor, "Hispanic and Asian Immigration Waves in Houston," p. 33.
  7. ↑ Kolker, Claudia. "Carless in Houston/POVERTY'S RIDE/For some, bicycling sole means of transportation," Houston Chronicle, 18 June 1997. A1. Retrieved on December 31, 2011.
  8. ↑ Boisseau, Charles. "Hispanic companies thriving/Houston has 26 of top 500 firms." Houston Chronicle. Friday May 31, 1991. Business 1. Retrieved on February 6, 2012.
  9. ↑ Morris, Jim. "EASY PREY/LIFE ON THE THE EDGE/ The powerless often are forced into apartments that defy city housing codes and, in some cases, belief." Houston Chronicle. Sunday March 26, 1995. A1. Retrieved on December 30, 2011.
  10. ↑ 10.0 10.1 10.2 Rodriguez, Lori. "Sanchez's mayoral bid targets disparate voters." Houston Chronicle. Sunday October 7, 2001. A1. Retrieved on October 27, 2011.
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  12. ↑ Rodriguez, Lori. "SHIFTING DEMOGRAPHICS / Latinos bringing change to black neighborhoods / Newcomers are finding acceptance comes gradually," Houston Chronicle. Monday May 2, 2005. A1. Retrieved on February 4, 2009.
  13. ↑ Schilcutt, Katharine. "Honduras in Houston." Houston Press. Thursday August 19, 2010. Retrieved on August 23, 2010.
  14. ↑ Garza, Cynthia Leonor. "Latinos' political power hasn't matched growth," Houston Chronicle, 19 August 2007. 2. Retrieved on November 22, 2011.
  15. ↑ Shauk, Zain. "Hispanic-opportunity district draws three candidates." Houston Chronicle. Friday October 14, 2011. Retrieved on November 4, 2011. (Refer to image, Archive)
  16. ↑ Treviño, Robert R. The Church in the Barrio: Mexican American Ethno-Catholicism in Houston. UNC Press Books, February 27, 2006. 15. Retrieved from Google Books on November 22, 2011. ISBN 0-8078-5667-3, ISBN 978-0-8078-5667-3.
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  21. ↑ Rodriguez, Nestor, "Hispanic and Asian Immigration Waves in Houston," p. 36.
  22. ↑ Cobb, Russell and Paul Knight. "Immigration: Cubans Enter U.S. at Texas-Mexico Border." Houston Press. January 8, 2008. 1. Retrieved on December 11, 2009.
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  24. ↑ Money Smart Press Release. Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation
  25. ↑ Power Speaks Spanish in Texas. Puerto Rico Herald
  26. ↑ 26.0 26.1 26.2 26.3 26.4 26.5 26.6 Treviño, Robert R. The Church in the Barrio: Mexican American Ethno-Catholicism in Houston. UNC Press Books, February 27, 2006. 29. Retrieved from Google Books on November 22, 2011. ISBN 0-8078-5667-3, ISBN 978-0-8078-5667-3.
  27. ↑ Rodriguez, Nestor, "Hispanic and Asian Immigration Waves in Houston," p. 38.
  28. ↑ 28.0 28.1 28.2 Rodriguez, Nestor, "Hispanic and Asian Immigration Waves in Houston," p. 37.
  29. ↑ Rodriguez, Nestor, "Hispanic and Asian Immigration Waves in Houston," p. 37-38.
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  31. ↑ "Number Crunching." PBS Newshour. August 25, 1998. Retrieved on March 17, 2012.
  32. ↑ Snyder, Mike. "Survey provides insight into Chinese community." Houston Chronicle. October 2, 2002. Retrieved on April 22, 2013.
  33. ↑ Moreno, Jenalia. "Houston's 'Chinatown' near Beltway 8 sparks banking boom." Houston Chronicle. Sunday February 18, 2007. Retrieved on October 16, 2011.
  34. ↑ Harkinson, Josh. "Tale of Two Cities." Houston Press. Thursday December 15, 2005. 2. Retrieved on March 17, 2012.
  35. ↑ Collier, Kiah. "It's official: Air China to begin flights to Beijing." Houston Chronicle. January 15, 2013. Retrieved on April 21, 2013.
  36. ↑ 36.0 36.1 36.2 36.3 36.4 36.5 36.6 Klineberg and Wu, p. 12.
  37. ↑ Cook, Allison. "The Grand Tour." Texas Monthly. Emmis Communications, January 1983. Vol. 11, No. 1. Start page p. 98. ISSN 0148-7736. Cited p. 109.
  38. ↑ Shilcut, Katharine. "Little India." Houston Press. Wedmesday May 25, 2011. 4. Retrieved on May 26, 2011.
  39. ↑ 39.0 39.1 39.2 39.3 39.4 39.5 39.6 Rustomji, p. 249.
  40. ↑ Shilcut, Katharine. "Little India." Houston Press. Wedmesday May 25, 2011. 1. Retrieved on May 26, 2011.
  41. ↑ 41.0 41.1 41.2 Patel, Purva. "Asian-American newspapers reach a flourishing market." Houston Chronicle. September 30, 2007. Retrieved on May 25, 2014.
  42. ↑ "Houston Sikh community reacts to shooting." Houston Chronicle. August 6, 2012. Retrieved on May 3, 2014.
  43. ↑ Kumar, Seshadri. "Sugar Land engineer pens novel" (Archive). Houston Chronicle. December 20, 2006. Retrieved on October 7, 2014.
  44. ↑ Patel, Purva. "Pakistani center touts retail concept as a novel idea." ("Pakistani center pays its way Retail space included as old H-E-B remodeled") Houston Chronicle. January 16, 2007. Retrieved on May 2, 2014.
  45. ↑ Badr, p. 193.
  46. ↑ "header.jpg" (Archive). Bangladesh Association, Houston. Retrieved on September 26, 2014.
  47. ↑ "Home." Bangladesh Association, Houston. Retrieved on September 26, 2014.
  48. ↑ Christian, Carol. "Bangladeshis plan SW Harris center More than 10,000 from ex-East Pakistan live in Houston" (Archive). Houston Chronicle. June 2, 2011. Retrieved on June 3, 2011. "As envisioned, the $2.5 million facility at 13145 Renn Road in southwest Harris County will have an auditorium and classrooms as well as an outdoor sports complex and playground."
  49. ↑ "Bangladesh-American Center of Houston" (Archive). India Herald. Retrieved on May 2, 2014.
  50. ↑ Lomax, John Nova. "The Seoul of Houston: The Weather Was Not the Strong Point on Long Point." Houston Press. January 30, 2008.
  51. ↑ Aqui, Reggie (2004-12-27). "Houston's connection to Indonesian earthquake victims". KHOU-TV.
  52. ↑ Giglio, Mike. "The Burmese Come to Houston." Houston Press. September 1, 2009. 1. Retrieved on December 19, 2009.
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  56. ↑ http://hmaacvoices.org/2014/05/15/the-african-republic-of-houston/
  57. ↑ http://hmaacvoices.org/2014/05/15/the-african-republic-of-houston/
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  60. ↑ http://www.chron.com/news/article/Data-show-Nigerians-the-most-educated-in-the-U-S-1600808.php
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  67. ↑ Lezon, Dale. "Energy, space draw Russian consulate here." Houston Chronicle. May 26, 2004. A21 MetFront. Retrieved on February 11, 2009.
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  76. ↑ Shellnutt, Kate. "Local Baha’is pray for jailed leaders in Iran." Houston Chronicle. February 8, 2010. Retrieved on May 3, 2014.
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  78. ↑ Bell, p. 217.
  79. ↑ Rothman, p. 358.
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  82. ↑ Shellnutt, Kate. "Coptic Christians in Houston cancel Christmas services." Houston Chronicle. January 6, 2011. Retrieved on May 25, 2014.
  83. ↑ Chitwood, Ken. "Houston Sikhs hope to avert tragedy by educating on religion." Houston Chronicle. August 9, 2012. Retrieved on May 3, 2014.
  84. ↑ "Houston Sikh community reacts to shooting." Houston Chronicle. August 6, 2012. Retrieved on May 3, 2014.
  85. ↑ Murphy, Bill. "Maronite cardinal tells of threat to Lebanon." Houston Chronicle. May 20, 2008. Retrieved on May 3, 2014.
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