The affluent suburbs nestled in the northern reaches of Dallas, Texas, have unexpectedly become a stage for mounting racial tensions. This is occurring against a backdrop of swift immigration growth from South Asia, particularly in cities like Frisco, Plano, and Irving. These areas are experiencing explosive population increases linked to the flourishing job market within the Dallas-Fort Worth region, affectionately dubbed ‘Silicon Prairie.’ Here, the arrival of tech, finance, and corporate giants has turned the area into a hub of opportunities.
Driving this population surge is a substantial influx of highly paid foreign professionals from India, many of whom are entering the United States under H-1B visas. This trend has significantly impacted Frisco, a suburb that has become one of the most sought-after locations in the area. In Frisco, the demographic landscape has shifted dramatically, with median home prices soaring to just over $700,000, nearly doubling the national average.
Today, Asian residents constitute approximately one-third of Frisco’s population, with a significant portion being of Indian descent. This shift is underscored by data provided by the city itself, highlighting the evolving cultural tapestry of this vibrant suburb.
Frisco – widely regarded as the most coveted suburb in the area – has seen the most dramatic demographic shift. Median house prices are just over the $700,000 mark, which is around double the national average.
Asians residents now make up roughly a third (33 percent) of the population in Frisco, with Indians representing a major share, according to the city’s own data.
That’s up from around 2 percent in 2000 and 10 percent in 2010 when the majority of the residents were white, the US Census recorded.
Anger over the changing demographics has transformed otherwise routine city council meetings in Frisco into cultural battlegrounds in recent weeks.
Tensions have boiled over as residents angrily air grievances over jobs going to non-Americans and changes in their neighborhoods and schools at breakneck speed.
In a four-hour tongue lashing that went until one o’clock in the morning, hundreds of residents who spoke at this week’s Frisco’s city council meeting pleaded with elected officials – some going as far as to threaten them – to stop the construction of two new Indian religious temples.
An aerial view of West Plano, Texas, part of the Dallas-Fort Worth area that has become known as ‘Silicone Prairie’ because of its huge population growth due to a booming job market
Hundreds of Hindus visit the Karya Siddhi Hanuman Temple in Frisco, Texas, on Memorial Day
The massive place of worship can hold thousands of attendees, leaving neighbors in the residential areas immediately next to it complaining about the traffic in their once quiet streets
‘What about our culture as Texans? What about our culture as Friscoans?’ resident Michael Wu said at Tuesday’s meeting. ‘Asking us as Texans to accept another temple, especially when a group has not assimilated to us, is a bridge too far. This is why we are having such a strong reaction.’
Families told the Daily Mail that in recent years, there have been growing examples of young, single Indian bachelors packing into large suburban homes – sometimes living eight to a house – altering the character of quiet residential streets.
‘We’ve seen this several times where it’s a house full of six, seven, eight of them,’ one 20-year homeowner in Plano said, ‘They’re usually college-age (adults) and they don’t take care of the house.
‘I’ve had to call neighborhood services to address several issues on the outside of the home. I can’t imagine what it looks like on the inside.’
He insisted his unease has less to do with nationality and more to do with the sudden surge of young men in neighborhoods designed for families with young children.
‘It’s not ideal for any reason, particularly if you have young kids living in your home,’ he added.
‘You really want nuclear families, homeowners that have been there for a long time who will take pride into their communities, and we’re losing that.’
Other Plano residents expressed anxiety about more traditionally American businesses being replaced by South Asian grocers, restaurants, stores and cultural centers.
Dozens of Indian supermarkets, like Patel Brothers, have popped up in strip malls across Plano and Frisco.
In Frisco, the Indian population has surged from three percent in 2000 to 33 percent today
Busloads of children were dropped off at an apartment complex in Plano, Texas, in recent days. Many of the children were Indian
In Frisco, locals highlighted that a Tex-Mex restaurant had recently closed down has now been replaced by a Desi vegetarian eatery.
Other complaints center around religious temples, such as the Karya Siddhi Hanuman Temple in Frisco, a massive temple that draws hundreds of visitors daily, and even more during religious holidays like Diwali.
Neighbors have complained about traffic congestion during major events and the impact of large-scale celebrations on otherwise quiet residential streets.
Two additional temples – one Hindu and the other Jain – are under construction. While many non-Indian Frisco taxpayers oppose them, Frisco’s mayor has publicly stated that permits from the houses of worship were approved years ago, and the city council has no legal reason to stop their building from moving ahead.
Many long-time residents claim their complaints about their new neighbors are purely pragmatic. However, the backlash against the Indian immigrants has undeniably racist and violent undertones.
The tensions are being stoked by social media, where videos of a packed Costco on a weekend display customers allegedly of Indian descent and call the scene ‘Mumbai, Texas.’
A video shared on X by @info_maiden shows a procession of Indian people in the streets of Aubrey, Texas, just north of Dallas
North Texas suburbs like Aubrey, Frisco, Plano and McKinney have seen an explosion of Indian arrivals, many whom arrived in the US legally with H-1B visas sponsored by American companies
The vitriol drew January 6 rioter Jake Lang from his home state of Florida to speak at Frisco’s city council meeting Tuesday.
Indicted on 11 counts of assaulting a police officer at the US capitol in 2020 before he was pardoned by President Donald Trump, Lang threatened local elected leaders for allowing a ‘Indian invasion.’
‘You all deserve to be strung,’ Lang shouted at Frisco’s city council on Tuesday.
He also urged violence against the various religious temples and mosques as local police officers escorted him out of the building.
The Indian wave has become the central issue in Frisco’s mayoral race, as incumbent Jeff Cheney has termed out of office.
The mayor’s race is non-partisan, meaning candidates don’t usually declare a party affiliation. However, candidate Rod Vilhauer hasn’t been shy about where he stands on the newcomers.
‘This feels like an invasion, not assimilation,’ Vilhauer said during a podcast appearance last month.
He also drew controversy for remarks in which he admitted he had not previously understood the difference between Muslims and Indians, and for calling immigrants ‘rats’ – a comment he later apologized for.
‘People are coming in and out of here like rats… that’s not the right word,’ the retired business man said.
A shopping center in Plano, Texas, is made up entirely of Indian businesses
Businesses like India Bazaar and Desi District cater to the 32,000 Indians living in the city and the 39,000 South Asians living in neighboring Frisco, Texas
His rival, Mark Hill, an attorney and school board member, has instead called for unity.
‘If we stop becoming a welcoming community, that’s when this city starts to really struggle,’ Hill said in an interview with local station WFAA.
Voters will make their selection during a June 13 special election.
Across North Texas, the rise in Indian immigration has been driven by the region’s booming job market and the continued use of the H-1B visa system, designed for workers in ‘specialty occupations’ requiring a bachelor’s degree or equivalent experience.
In fiscal year 2024, 71 percent of H-1B visas issued nationwide went to Indian applicants, according to federal data.
While intended to fill genuine skills gaps, the program has also become politically contentious. Critics claim H-1B workers have taken jobs away from deserving Americans.
Texas now ranks among the top states in the country for H-1B approvals, second only to California.
One white Texan told the Daily Mail he works at a Fortune 500 company in Plano and claimed 80 percent of his office colleagues are Indian, doing the kind of jobs anyone with an IT background could do.
‘I’m essentially a minority almost everywhere I go in Collin County,’ he said.
‘They’re taking jobs that could otherwise go to Americans and companies are outsourcing and doing it on purpose.’
At the same time, the population of South Asian students in schools has also raised eyebrows.
In Frisco Independent School District, the number of Asian students rose from around 18 percent to 44 percent while the percentage of white students declined, Texas Education Agency data shows.
The high concentration of Indian students – some US citizens and others the children of visa-holders – is evident at school bus pick-ups and drop-offs.
It’s very common to see large groups of Indian parents sending off their kids or welcoming them back after a day of studies in Frisco and Plano apartment complexes.
Hundreds of Indians gather in The Colony, near Frisco, Texas, for last year’s Great Indian Spring Festival
Some residents of a Plano neighborhood are upset about the many single Indian men who live in this house on a street made up mostly of married couples with kids
The Daily Mail recently witnessed as four busloads of kids were dropped off at the apartments in Plano. Between all four buses with at least 200 kids, all but one was Indian.
Naimisha Alluri, a new arrival from India, hit back at claims that Indians were being hired on the cheap.
‘We’re not taking jobs, it’s based on the talent.’
‘It comes because of the hard work and talent. As you know, most of the immigrants who come here mostly would be engineers working in IT field and the doctors who are coming here. Those are high paid jobs. It’s because of the hard work.’
Despite social media highlighting the extremes, many Indians say Texans have embraced them.
Alluri moved to the Dallas area about a year ago when her fiancé took a job with a finance company.
‘It feels like home,’ she explained of finding so many other Indians to befriend.
She added she has not personally experienced any kind of racism or hostility.
