The American term ‘Hindu’ collapsed all South Asian religions into one racial category

Evidence

Orientalism placed Asians arriving in America in unusual categories. The first Asian immigrants in the U.S.—those from China and Japan—for instance, were commonly referred to as ‘‘Oriental.’’ Legal, political, and popular discourse of the late nineteenth century and early twentieth century also employed the misnomer ‘‘Hindoo’’ for those who had come from the Indian subcontinent. ‘‘Hindoo’’ was a homogenizing category that referred to South Asian immigrants mainly from Punjab Province; it encompassed not only Hindus, but also practitioners of the Sikh and Muslim religious (Jensen 1988). — Junaid Rana, Terrifying Muslims, 289 (#exemplifies, via linked claim)

Mounting anti-Chinese prejudice on the West Coast prompted California to pass the 1913 Alien Land Law Act, preventing immigrants from owning land. When Sikhs became successful farmers in the early 1900s, anti-Asian xenophobia expanded to include people from the Indian subcontinent, collectively categorized as Hindus in the US Census. Congress then passed the 1917 Immigration Act, barring Indian, Chinese, and other Asians from immigrating to the United States. — Sahar F. Aziz, The Racial Muslim, 340 (#exemplifies, via linked claim)

Categorization

• XREF: connects to: Non-white South Asian immigrants could obtain citizenship by passing as Black; Early US law lumped all South Asian immigrants into the religious category ‘Hindoo’ — Junaid Rana, Terrifying Muslims: Race and Labor in…, 289; The composite Oriental racial category fused South Asian Hindus with MENA Muslims (+15 more)

Broader Connections

• Early US law lumped all South Asian immigrants into the religious category ‘Hindoo’ #exemplifies (0.97) — Junaid Rana, Terrifying Muslims, 289
• Sikhs were misclassified as Hindus in the US Census #exemplifies (0.93) — Sahar F. Aziz, The Racial Muslim, 340