Life behind the lobby : Indian motel owners and the American dream / Pawan Dhingra.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Dhingra, Pawan.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

East Indian American businesspeople.

East Indian Americans--Economic conditions.

East Indian Americans.

East Indian Americans--Social conditions.

Motels--United States.

Motels.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (265 p.)

Edition:

1st ed.

Place of Publication:

Stanford, California : Stanford University Press, 2012.

Language Note:

English

Summary:

Indian Americans own about half of all the motels in the United States. Even more remarkable, most of these motel owners come from the same region in India and-although they are not all related-seventy percent of them share the surname of Patel. Most of these motel owners arrived in the United States with few resources and, broadly speaking, they are self-employed, self-sufficient immigrants who have become successful-they live the American dream. However, framing this group as embodying the American dream has profound implications. It perpetuates the idea of American exceptionali

Contents:

Contents; Acknowledgments; Introduction; 1. Building the Diaspora; 2. Reaching for the American Dream; 3. Business Hardships and Immigrant Realities; 4. Professional Appearances and Backstage Hierarchies; 5. The Possibility of Belonging; Conclusion; Notes; Bibliography; Index

Notes:

Description based upon print version of record.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN:

9780804782029

0804782024

OCLC:

782879937