Mapping Bengali New York Restricted; Files Only

Abstract

Since the late 1900s, the Bengali population in New York City has increased rapidly, settling across different neighborhoods throughout the city. This project traces the community formation of “Bengali New York,” building upon themes of migration and spatial racialization using a mixed-method “bottom-up” approach. It uses demographic data, mapping, historical research, ethnographic fieldwork, and oral history to triangulate first-person narratives of Bengali New York. Existing scholarship on the Bengali diaspora in New York City and ethnic community formation and racialization in the city illuminate this work. After tracing the formation of the Bengali communities in the neighborhoods of Jackson Heights, Jamaica, and Kensington, I turn to oral histories to personalize these histories. I argue that Bengali New York is not one spatially cohesive community, but a diasporic community in formation that has taken root in distinct neighborhoods, across which stratification in the Bengali experience is mapped.

Table of Contents

Table of Contents Introduction..................................................................................................................................... 1 Literature Review and Methodology .............................................................................................. 5 The (Muslim) Bangladeshi American Diaspora ................................................................... 5 Relational Race Formations...............................................................................................13 Diasporic and Transnational Ethnic Communities in NYC.................................................19 South Asians in America....................................................................................................23 Methodology..................................................................................................................... 24 Bengali New York and Space............................................................................................. 28 Mapping Bengali New York ........................................................................................................... 30 New York City’s Racial Landscape .....................................................................................30 Racialized Public Imagination, Before 1916 .......................................................... 33 Racialized Urban Planning ..................................................................................... 42 Jackson Heights, Queens................................................................................................... 46 A Neighborhood History........................................................................................ 46 The 74th Steet Station............................................................................................49 Labor and Businesses............................................................................................ 51 Diversity Plaza ....................................................................................................... 60 Imaginations of Jackson Heights...........................................................................63 Jamaica, Queens................................................................................................................ 65 A Neighborhood History........................................................................................ 65 The Jamaica Avenue Station ................................................................................. 69 Labor and Businesses............................................................................................ 70 Imaginations of Jamaica........................................................................................ 75 Kensington, Brooklyn ........................................................................................................ 76 A Neighborhood History.........................................................................................76 A Walking Site Visit ............................................................................................... 77 Imaginations of Kensington................................................................................... 79 Mapping Bengali New York…………………………………………………………………………………………. 80 Oral Histories.................................................................................................................................82 Migration Narratives…………………………………………………………………………………………………… 83 Arrival Before 1990: Post-Hart Celler, Pre-Diversity Visa...................................... 83 Arrival in 1990: A Shift in Migration Trends...........................................................90 Arrival After 1990: Family Ties..............................................................................94 Arriving in the 2000s: Continuing Threads............................................................98 Islam: Morality, Community Formation, and Racialization…………………………………………. 100 Generation (and Gender)................................................................................................ 103 Narrating Bengali New York .............................................................................................104 Conclusion ....................................................................................................................................106 References....................................................................................................................................109

About this Honors Thesis

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School	Emory College
Department	Anthropology
Degree	B.S.
Submission	Honors Thesis
Language	English
Research Field	Sociology, Ethnic and Racial Studies American Studies Urban and Regional Planning
Mot-clé	Bengali Community Formation Race New York City
Committee Chair / Thesis Advisor	Iliana Yamileth Rodriguez, Emory University
Committee Members	Robert Paul, Emory University Sameena Mulla, Emory University

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