As of the

2010 U.S. Census The United States census of 2010 was the twenty-third United States national census. National Census Day, the reference day used for the census, was April 1, 2010. The census was taken via mail-in citizen self-reporting, with enumerators servin ...

the number of people in the Houston area of Pakistani origin was counted as 27,856. In 2007 the Pakistani-American Association of Greater Houston (PAGH) stated that about 60,000 people of Pakistani origin lived in Greater Houston and that many of them lived in Southwest Houston.Patel, Purva.
Pakistani center touts retail concept as a novel idea
" ("Pakistani center pays its way Retail space included as old H-E-B remodeled") '' Houston Chronicle''. January 16, 2007. Retrieved on May 2, 2014. As of 2000, over 70% of the Muslims in Houston are Pakistani or Indian.Badr, p
193
Estimates around 2012 show the number of the Pakistani community in Houston exceeding 100,000.

History

In 2001 a woman being questioned by an off-duty sheriff's deputy about a theft at a grocery store in northwest Houston fell ill and died. Afterwards, the Pakistan Association of Greater Houston, the Islamic Society of Greater Houston (ISGH), and the Council of American Islamic Relations (CAIR) were scheduled to form a committee about the incident. On May 23, 2004 Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) was scheduled to begin flights to Karachi from Houston on a twice weekly basis. The passengers stayed on the aircraft while it took refueling stops in Manchester, England. In April 2005 a Houston attorney named Syed Izfar accused officers of the

U.S. Customs and Border Protection United States Customs and Border Protection (CBP) is the largest federal law enforcement agency of the United States Department of Homeland Security. It is the country's primary border control organization, charged with regulating and facilit ...

(CBP) at George Bush Intercontinental Airport of profiling customers of the PIA flight. PIA regional manager Munsif Ansari argued that CBP officers "are pretty reasonable. In fact, the feedback I've heard from people is that they were being treated very well." In July of that year,

Ghulam Bombaywala Ghulam Mohammed "Bombay" Bombaywala is a Pakistani-American restaurateur in Houston.Houston City Council member

M.J. Khan Masrur Javed "M.J." Khan (born May 1, 1950) is a Pakistani American and former Houston City Council member.Dooley, Tara. "Khan inspires Muslims with election to council." ''Houston Chronicle''. Saturday, December 13, 2003. Religion p. 1. NewsBank R ...

. After the

2005 Kashmir earthquake The 2005 Kashmir earthquake occurred at on 8 October in Pakistani-administered Azad Kashmir. It was centred near the city of Muzaffarabad, and also affected nearby Balakot in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and some areas of Indian-administered Jammu and ...

, the two men organized separate relief efforts instead of doing a joint effort.Hegstrom, Edward.
Restaurateur's money woes spark more discord
" '' Houston Chronicle''. January 9, 2006. Retrieved on May 2, 2014. The PAGH, under Bombaywala, collected over $8,000 ($ according to inflation) by October 10 of that year. In December 2005 Bombaywala stated that the Pakistani community had 60,000 people and that the community donated over $1 million ($ according to inflation) to the earthquake relief efforts. In 2006 Bombaywala filed for

Chapter 7 bankruptcy Chapter 7 of Title 11 of the United States Code (Bankruptcy Code) governs the process of liquidation under the bankruptcy laws of the United States, in contrast to Chapters 11 and 13, which govern the process of ''reorganization'' of a debtor. ...

, and Edward Hegstrom of the '' Houston Chronicle'' stated that this increased the discord in the Houston Pakistani community. When Pervez Musharraf,

President of Pakistan The president of Pakistan ( ur, , translit=s̤adr-i Pākiṣṭān), officially the President of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is the ceremonial head of state of Pakistan and the commander-in-chief of the Pakistan Armed Forces.martial law there in 2007, Houstonians of Pakistani origins protested.Carroll, Susan.
Houstonians call for end to Pakistan martial law
" '' Houston Chronicle''. November 8, 2007. Retrieved on May 25, 2014. "Pirzada, a gas station owner, took the afternoon off to join about two dozen protesters outside the Pakistani Consulate in northwest Houston." That year, the Pakistani community expressed sadness after

Benazir Bhutto Benazir Bhutto ( ur, بینظیر بُھٹو; sd, بينظير ڀُٽو; Urdu ; 21 June 1953 – 27 December 2007) was a Pakistani politician who served as the 11th and 13th prime minister of Pakistan from 1988 to 1990 and again from 1993 t ...

was assassinated. After Musharraf resigned in 2008, Jemimah Noonoo of the '' Houston Chronicle'' stated that the reaction from the Pakistani community in Houston "was mixed". The Pakistani community is described as fairly prosperous, with many doctors, engineers and businesspeople. A large number of gas stations in Houston are owned by Pakistanis.

Economy

Pakistanis in Houston include owners of small and large businesses as well as computer software/hardware engineers and medical professionals. Smaller businesses include convenience stores, gas stations, and restaurants; while larger businesses are related to the fields of information technology, manufacturing, real estate, and textiles. the city had at least 20 Pakistani restaurants.

Demographics

there were about 60,000 persons of Pakistani origins in Houston; that year Pakistani groups in the area estimated that 75% of them were U.S. citizens. Southwest Houston and Sugar Land had large numbers of persons of Pakistani origin, while the numbers of the group in Clear Lake City and northern Houston were increasing.

Institutions

Pakistani American Community Center

The Pakistani American Community Center is in Alief, near Bissonnet and Dairy Ashford. The center includes seven retail spaces, a small library, a banquet hall, a clinic for low-income individuals, and prayer halls. The center offers after-school activities. As of January 2007, six of the retail spaces were rented out for an average rent of $1 ($ according to inflation) per month. In August 2005 the PAGH purchased a former H-E-B for $1.3 million."SOUTHWEST HOUSTON - Pakistani-American group opens center." '' Houston Chronicle''. Thursday July 12, 2007. ThisWeek p. 1. Available at NewsBank, Record Number 4381403. Available online from the Houston Public Library with a library card. "The Pakistani American Community Center, 12638 Bissonnet, .. The PAGH had originally purchased land in Southwest Houston for the purpose of building a center, but after

Ghulam Bombaywala Ghulam Mohammed "Bombay" Bombaywala is a Pakistani-American restaurateur in Houston.Sheila Jackson-Lee; Ronald Green, a Houston City Council member; Nick Lampson;

Al Green Albert Leornes Greene (born April 13, 1946), better known as Al Green, is an American singer, songwriter, pastor and record producer best known for recording a series of soul hit singles in the early 1970s, including " Take Me to the River", ...

; and John F. Healey Jr., the Fort Bend County District Attorney. A Congressional Certificate of Recognition stating that the building was "the first Pakistani community center in the nation" was presented by Al Green.Kumar, Seshadri.
Pakistani center opening attracts a crowd
" '' Houston Chronicle''. July 2, 2007. Retrieved on May 25, 2014.

Consulate-General of Pakistan

The Consulate-General of Pakistan is located in the 11850 Jones Road property in unincorporated Harris County, northwest of Downtown Houston. The consulate serves residents of Texas, Arkansas, Louisiana, New Mexico, Colorado, Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, Florida, and

Oklahoma Oklahoma (; Choctaw language, Choctaw: ; chr, ᎣᎧᎳᎰᎹ, ''Okalahoma'' ) is a U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States, bordered by Texas on the south and west, Kansas on the nor ...

.A Message from Consul General

Archive
. ''Consulate-General of Pakistan in Houston''. Retrieved on January 12, 2009. The 11850 Jones Road property, near the intersection of Jones Road and Greencreek Drive, is managed by the real estate company Transwestern. The , $1,125,500 United States dollar building was built in 1984. The property includes of land and of office space with twelve private offices, two conference rooms with fireplaces, and a private bath on the third floor. The building received upgrades in 2001. The consulate opened in June 2004. After the

Assassination of Benazir Bhutto The assassination of Benazir Bhutto ( ur, بینظیر بھُٹو کا قتل) took place on 27 December 2007 in Rawalpindi, Pakistan. Benazir Bhutto, twice Prime Minister of Pakistan (1988–1990; 1993–1996) and then-leader of the oppositi ...

in 2007 the consulate provided a book for recording condolences for

. In 2008 Pakistan's National Accountability Bureau issued a reference against an employee of the consulate, accusing him of issuing forged passports.

Media

Pakistan Post Pakistan Post ( ur, ) is a state enterprise which functions as Pakistan's primary and largest postal operator. 49,502 employees through a vehicle fleet of 5,000 operate traditional "to the door" service from more than 13,419 post offices acro ...

'', with U.S. operations headquartered in New York City, has an office in Houston. the radio channels KGOL-AM and KILE-AM host a program discussing South Asian affairs.

Sports and recreation

In September 2018 a

cricket Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of eleven players on a field at the centre of which is a pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two bails balanced on three stumps. The batting side scores runs by striki ...

complex in Prairie View was scheduled to open. It was established by Pakistani American Tanweer Ahmed.

Notable residents

Ghulam Bombaywala Ghulam Mohammed "Bombay" Bombaywala is a Pakistani-American restaurateur in Houston.M.J. Khan Masrur Javed "M.J." Khan (born May 1, 1950) is a Pakistani American and former Houston City Council member.Dooley, Tara. "Khan inspires Muslims with election to council." ''Houston Chronicle''. Saturday, December 13, 2003. Religion p. 1. NewsBank R ...

( Houston City Council member) * Mariyah MotenOaklander, Mandy.
Five Famous Indian and Pakistani Houstonians
" '' Houston Press''. Tuesday August 16, 2011. Retrieved on February 4, 2016.

References

* Badr, Hoda. "''Al Noor'' Mosque: Strength Through Unity" (Chapter 11). In: Chafetz, Janet Salzman and Helen Rose Ebaugh (editors). ''Religion and the New Immigrants: Continuities and Adaptations in Immigrant Congregations''.

AltaMira Press Rowman & Littlefield Publishing Group is an independent publishing house founded in 1949. Under several imprints, the company offers scholarly books for the academic market, as well as trade books. The company also owns the book distributing compa ...

, October 18, 2000. , 9780759117129.

Notes

External links

Pakistani American Association of Greater Houston

Pakistan Association of Greater Houston

Pakistani Embassy & Consulate Jurisdictions

Consulate General of Pakistan in Houston

Urdu Times Houston
{{Pakistani diaspora Pakistani Pakistani Houston Houston Pakistani-American history History of Houston