Santi Nallapaneni and Indian Immigration

YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio—Santi Nallapaneni rushed into the lobby of Jamie’s Dance Force, her shiny black hair thrown into a loose ponytail, dressed in a casual black track suit, just in time to get her daughters from hip-hop class.

“I meant to be here sooner, but I had to pick up paperwork from a client for Monday,” she said apologetically as she collapsed into a chair, her dark brown eyes gleaming.

Nallapaneni, a 34-year-old first-generation American of Indian descent who recently switched companies and now works as a financial adviser for J.P. Morgan Chase, described her schedule as “hectic.”

However, a strong work ethic is one of the foundations of Indian families that parents pass down to their children, among other values such as religion, strong educational value, and respect for family members.

The 2000 U.S. Census reported that Indian-American men earned the highest full-time, year round median incomes, nearly double the rest of the American population.

Additionally, Indian-Americans make up a disproportionately high number of physicians, lawyers and engineers, among other professions, according to statistics provided by the U.S. India Political Action Committee.

Nallapaneni’s father, Anil Nalluri, came to America in 1975 with his wife, Parvati, and their two young sons from Guntur, A.P., India, to pursue a medical career.

“There was a shortage of physicians in the United States, and the opportunity just presented itself,” Nallapaneni said about her father’s decision to move.

Nalluri joined some Indian friends in Akron, Ohio, and completed both medical school and his residency in the city, before moving Youngstown, Ohio. These friends prompted the Nalluris’ decision to move, and the friends later founded the India Association of Greater Youngstown.

Adjusting to life in America, even with friends, still proved difficult. In addition to being homesick and dealing with cultural differences, the Nalluris were unprepared for the change in weather.

“The cold was a shock,” Nallapaneni said. “India was very warm.”

Nallapaneni, who lives in the Youngstown suburb of Canfield with her husband, by arranged marriage, and three young children, was born in the U.S. and had no issues adjusting.

“God, look at me, I’m so American!” she said. “I don’t even think of myself as different, but I know I am.”

Because of their dark skin, hair and eye color, the Nallapanenis are easy to recognize, especially in a community of few minority families. Nallapaneni even wears a silver aum charm, a religious Hindu symbol, on a necklace.

“Today when I met a client, she immediately goes, ‘You’re Sachin’s mom!’” Nallapaneni said. “My daughters look different onstage when they dance. You know which kids are ours.”

Though Indians are minorities in the U.S., they don’t face widespread racism or discrimination. Some setbacks have included 1980s Indian American intimidation group Dotbusters, in New Jersey, and the more recent “Indophobia,” discrimination because of outsourcing, according to a Columbia University report.

However, that is not the most severe of Indian-American discrimination. In 1917, the Barred Zone Act prohibited Asians, including Indians, from immigrating to the U.S. In 1923, Indians became ineligible for citizenship. But eventually, President Truman returned the right to immigrate and naturalize to Indians with the Luce-Celler Act of 1946.

Most recently, the government has been cracking down on illegal aliens in the U.S., a practice Nallapaneni thinks is “smart.”

“People shouldn’t freely be able to come into this country. It affects our tax dollars,” she said.

Though Nallapaneni generally supports immigration, she said she believes the government should be stringent.

“There’s a process, and there’s a reason for [immigration laws],” she said. “People need to follow the proper process if they want to come here.”