Book on untold tales of South Asians in the US

ALAPPUZHA: South Asians form a significant segment of American population and have contributed to its development for the last 130 years.

But Americans have largely remained ignorant of their  history.  To fill this   lacuna, the Philadelphia-based South Asian American Digital Archive (SAADA) is set to publish a book which will be  made available to libraries, schools and homes in the US in May 2016.

The 150-page full-colour print text and digital edition  titled ‘Our Stories: An Introduction to South Asian America’ will trace the   history of South Asians from  the time of the first generation of migrants who had to work in farms, factories,  railroads and even fight for India’s freedom from British rule and struggle for equal rights.

“Today, there are over 3.4 million people who trace their origins to  South Asia, who are not  given an opportunity to learn about their own history,”   says Mr Samip Mallick, executive director of SAADA,  a non-profit organisation dedicated to documenting, preserving  and sharing the stories of South Asian Americans.

The  stories have been  collected through a  campaign called ‘Kickstarter’ launched by SAADA,  he said in an e-mail conversation with Deccan Chronicle.

Mr Dalip Singh Saund, who was elected to the U.S. Congress in 1956 after he was denied citizenship for over two decades, writes about  exclusion and political engagement.

The story of Anandibai Joshee, the first South Asian woman who earned an MD  from Pennsylvania in 1886,  describes the struggles faced by women in their early period of migration.  Eqbal Ahmad, an intellectual and activist, became a powerful voice opposing  Vietnam war.

“Each of the 11 chapters  will be written by scholars of South Asian American studies in collaboration with artists, activists, and practitioners,” Mr Mallick said.