Bangalore: The immigrants from India in US cultivate their American identity over time, without giving away their Indian culture, reveals an anthropological study conducted by immigration experts Caroline B. Brettell and Deborah Reed-Danahay. 

Indian people who have settled in US recently participate in many programmes, functions and banquets at the churches, schools, temples, cultural and social organizations, business and public associations in US and hence as a result, US identity grows deeper in them.

The researchers also came up with the finding that the Indian people in North Texas cultivate American identity by first involving in activities within their own communities, practicing and promoting their skills on citizenship. Then they use these skills in a wider American context.

Indian immigrants and Indian Americans in the cities of Dallas and Fort Worth in North Texas participated in the study, which was conducted over a time period of three years.

“A key contribution of our research is its emphasis on the fact that the civic incorporation of newcomers does not necessarily mean abandoning who you are,” Brettell, an anthropology professor from Southern Methodist University in Dallas, stated in a press release.

“Immigrant communities have spaces and places that are already operating as viable arenas for expressing civic and political presence and for becoming American,” she said.