Walking down Roosevelt Ave in Jackson Heights can feel much like a trip around the world in 20 blocks. Walking through Little Colombia and then suddenly finding ourselves in Little India was certainly a bit disorienting the first time we visited, but when we went back to do this project we found ourselves getting excited as we started noticing the shift in storefronts and people. Little India, Jackson Heights is one of the numerous cultural enclaves scattered throughout NYC. As with almost all of the other Littles in NYC, Jackson Heights has garnered its reputation as the hub for the city’s Indian faction through generations of immigration from the Southeast Asian country.
Recently, however, its reputation has awarded it an increasing amount of tourism, both from foreigners and NYC residents. While walking through the Indian community felt as close to walking down an Indian street as NYC gets, it wasn’t hard to notice that there were some places, advertising their culture with neon logos and fancy lettering, overshadowing smaller, more authentic shops catering specifically to the neighborhood’s Indian populace. It is in these shops that the most interesting stories hide; the stories this blog aims to showcase in order to spread the wonder that is Little India.
Similar to much of NYC, Jackson Heights is an up and coming neighborhood. Although it may not be permeating the neighborhood apparently, a change in clientele is one of the first things storeowners bring up when asked about what their tenure in the neighborhood has allowed them to notice. Although not every store has experienced the recent surge in outsider shoppers, that is clients who do not live by or usually shop in the store, those that have claim to also witness an increase in their online presence and, subsequently, their profits.
On the other hand, there are stores not far from these semi-gentrified blocks catering specifically to their Southeast Asian peers, such as Patel Brothers. Establishing the first supermarket of its kind in NYC, the Patel Brothers offers foods and other goods with which their Indian customers are very familiar. Their slogan, “Celebrating Our Food… Our Culture,” gives you a sense of the pride the storeowners take in their business, and, although it has become a chain store, the dedication they have to each of their customers.
Looking into the stores in Little India gave us a lot of insight into what the Jackson Heights Indian community values: traditional food and clothing. It was hard to keep track of all of the different foods pictured on signs and visible through storefront windows, especially when most of them are advertised in a language none of us understand. The attitudes of mom-and-pop stores became more timid when we entered, brandishing our cameras and trying to pronounce the seemingly jumbled letters labeling each item.
“The mentality of most is to serve this community while striving to increase their businesses.”
When we tried to approach the entrepreneurs behind the counter we were met with a whole lot of skepticism and questions about the purpose of our interviews. Considering the current immigration tensions in our country, it’s no surprise that they were hesitant to share any information regarding their families and their lives. However, after much effort, I was able to have an untaped conversation with a store owner who shared that she and her husband had immigrated to Jackson Heights 6 years ago, moving in with his cousin who had moved to the area a year prior. She went on to disclose that they had moved here because their small-scale bakery was making little to no business in India. Here, however, she states that she has taken a managerial position at her cousin’s restaurant Delhi Heights.
Work Bibliography:
Jackson Heights Station Modern Day – https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/Cf554kzjQkFf7ykCqUBgj1aEE8E=/800×0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/4380197/15_kensinger_jackson_heights_DSC_9105.0.jpg
Jackson Heights Station Black and White – https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/736x/c5/8e/57/c58e573f7b0379775603702ff6d5df3c.jpg
Jackson Heights Theater Modern Day – Courtesy of Frankie’s Apartment – http://frankiesapartment.com/shlog/category/storytime/page/10/
Jackson Heights Sketch Courtesy of Greater Astoria Historical Society Online Repository
Maps provided by Social Explorer:
Population Density, 2005. Social Explorer, (based on data from U.S. Census Bureau; accessed May 13 17:16:03 EST 2017).
Population Density, 2015. Social Explorer, (based on data from U.S. Census Bureau; accessed May 13 17:23:03 EST 2017).
Papri Chaat photograph courtesy of Patel Brother’s Supermarket
Little Pakistan Pedestrian Sidewalk – Courtesy of Edrien Diaz
80th Street Pedestrian Sidewalk – Courtesy of Untapped Cities featured on The Real Deal
Delhi Heights photograph – Courtesy of Edrien Diaz
Patel Brothers cover photograph- Courtesy of Edrien Diaz
Jewel R. – Interview Permitted use granted courtesy of Jewel R.
