Freaks and Geeks: On the Provisional Citizenship of Indian American Spelling Bee Winners

This article examines the relationship between Indian American dominance in the Scripps National Spelling Bee over the past decade and the increased cultural popularity of the bee as entertainment over this same period. Using the documentary film Spellbound (2002) and a range of media coverage, this article argues that on one hand, the Indian American competitors are seen as geeks—model minorities who are proof of American meritocracy. On the other, they are seen as racial freaks, allowing the audience to manage its anxieties about Asian American ascendance. These dual narratives help to explain the popularity of the bee, and also demonstrate how the spelling bee kids attain a provisional citizenship. That is, they are bestowed cultural citizenship—and the power to represent that sometimes comes with it—as long as they act within the bounds of a dominant notion of "American" values. Once they are perceived to have moved beyond these boundaries, or when they under/overperform on the field of play, their inclusion is jeopardized or revoked.