Indo-Caribbean Americans

Indo-Caribbean AmericansorIndian-Caribbean AmericansorIndo-West Indian American,  areAmericanswho trace their ancestry ultimately toIndia, though whose recent ancestors lived in theWest IndiesorCaribbean, where they migrated beginning in 1838 asindentured laborers. There are large populations ofIndo–Trinidadians and TobagoniansandIndo-Guyanesealong with a smaller population ofIndo-Surinamese,Indo-Jamaicansand other Indo-Caribbean people in theUnited States, especially in theNew York metropolitan areaandFlorida. TheWashington metropolitan area,Texas, andMinnesotaalso have small numbers ofIndo-GuyaneseandIndo-Trinidadians. Indo-Caribbean Americans are a subgroup ofCaribbean Americansas well asIndian Americans, which are a subgroup ofSouth Asian Americans, which itself is a subgroup ofAsian Americans.
Since the 1960s, a large Indo-Caribbean community has developed inSouth Richmond Hill, a neighborhood in theNew York Cityborough ofQueensin the state ofNew York. The Indo-Caribbean population has also grown rapidly in the Floridian cities ofTampa,Orlando,Kissimmee,Poinciana,Fort Myers,Naples,Ocala,West Palm Beach,Lake Worth,Wellington,Boynton Beach,Loxahatchee,The Acreage,Fort Lauderdale,Miami,Homestead,Cutler Bay,Palmetto Bay,Miami Gardens,Port Saint Lucie,Coral Springs,Margate,Lauderdale Lakes,North Lauderdale(more than 1% of residents in the city were born in Trinidad and Tobago),Sunrise,Plantation,Parkland,Lauderhill,Pompano Beach,Hallandale Beach,Hollywood,Oakland Park,Tamarac,Cooper City,Miramar,Davie,Weston,Southwest Ranches, andPembroke Pines.Indo-Surinamesetend to migrate to theNetherlands, but have started to settle inFloridaand theNew York metropolitan areain small numbers.Indo-Jamaicansalso live in moderate numbers throughout the New York metropolitan area and Florida. There are also smaller numbers ofIndo-Barbadians,Indo-Belizeans,Indo-French Guianese,Indo-Grenadians,Indo-Guadeloupeans,Indo-Martiniquais,Indo-Kittitian and Nevisian,Indo-Saint Lucian,Indo-Vincentian and Grenadinesein the New York metropolitan area and in Florida.
Majority of Indo-Caribbean Americans are followers ofHinduism, with a minority belonging toIslam,Christianityand other religions. Major holidays such asDiwali,Phagwah,Eid,Hosay,Indian Arrival Day,Easter, andChristmasare celebrated with a distinct flavor unique to theCaribbean.
The Richmond Hill Phagwah Parade is the largest Holi celebration in the United States. Thousands attend the parade annually each Spring in Queens, with thousands of attendees crowding Liberty Avenue and Smoky Oval Park.
South Floridahas become a destination forrotishops,Indian clothingboutiques,threading,mandirs/kovils,masjids,Indianchurches, and annual Indo-Caribbean Hindu, Muslim, and Christian religious events. It is also a popular spot forIndo-Caribbean artists. The Florida Melody Makers are the most well known Indo-Caribbean American band for years and continue to perform around the Southeastern United States.WHSR 980 AMandWWNNused to host Indian musical and religious programming weekly every Saturday and featured community leaders likePunditRamsurat K. Maharaj, Bhagwan R. Singh, Natty Ramoutar, Peter Ganesh, Al Mustapha, and Sam Subramani.
Most cultural shows continue to tie a cultural bond between theIndo-CaribbeanandIndian-Americancommunities, as well as inter-religious bonding betweenHindus,Muslims,Christians,Sikhs,Jains, andBuddhistespecially those hosted at educational institutions with an Indian student association likeFlorida International University,Florida Atlantic University,Nova Southeastern University,Broward College,Palm Beach State College, and theUniversity of Miami.
The Shiva Mandir inOakland Park(first Hindu Mandir inSouth Florida, built in the 1980s by the Florida Hindu Organization led by Pt. Ramsurat K. Maharaj and hosts one of the largest annualDiwalishows inFlorida), the Shree Saraswati Devi Mandir inOakland Park, Krishna Mandir inHollywood, Arya Samaj Mandir inRiverland, Shiva Lingam Mandir (Shiv Shakti Hanuman Mandir) inMargate, Palm Beach Hindu Mandir inLoxahatchee, Sanatan Sansthan Mandir in Loxahatchee, Shri Lakshmi Mandir inWest Palm Beach, Florida Sevashram Sangha inLake Worth, Lakshmi Narayan Mandir inPalmetto Estates, the Amar Jyoti Mandir inPalmetto Bay, and the Devi Bhavan Mandir inSouth Miami Heightsare largely attended by Indo-Caribbean people.Plantation High School, a school where most Caribbean people and Asians are of Indian descent, hosted an annualDiwalishow from 1993 to 2008. Starting as a one-day event in 2008 and expanding to a three-day event since 2009, theDivali NagarUSA entertains the local community with musical and religious performances, food, and vendors.
Music is a large part of the Indo-Caribbean American community, which includes the tunes ofBollywood,Indian classical music(especiallytaan,dhrupad,thumri,kajari,chaiti,hori,sawani, andghazal),Indian folk music(especiallybiraha,chowtal, and otherBhojpuri folk songs),bhajans,kirtan,quwwalis,quaseedas,chutney,baithak gana,chutney parang,chutney soca,tassa,soca,parang,steelpan,pichakaree,calypso,dancehall, andreggae.Bharatnatyamandkathakare respected classical traditional dances, and dance items fromHindi films,Bhojpuri films,Tamil films, andTelugu filmshave grown in favor as well. With the increasing emphasis on partying, Bollywood, chutney, chutney-soca, and soca music are preferred by the young crowd. (seeIndo-Caribbean music)
Politically, Indo-Caribbean Americans tend to favor theDemocratic Party, with aAALDEFexit poll indicating that a majority (86%) of Indo-Caribbean American voters backed the Joe Biden and Kamala Harris ticket in the2020 presidential election.