"History is Not a Spectator Sport"
The South Asian American Digital Archive (SAADA) allows me to access 2,500 items related to the history of South Asians in the United States. The archive gives voice to South Asian Americans through documenting, preserving, and sharing stories that represent their--our--unique and diverse experiences.
I will confess that I am a history junkie. I could spend my days happily lost in old papers, books, photos. But the SAADA mission is about here and now as much as it is about older times. 
Browsing the archive while searching for materials for a forthcoming book, I came upon an article about the Ghadr Party, an April 1916 portrait photo of Dhan Gopal Mukerji, who won the Newbery Medal in 1928, and a video interview with doctor and deaf community activist Shazia Siddiqi.[vimeo 70328170 w=640 h=360]One audio or video or print file at a time, the archive seeks ever wider, more inclusive representation of the collective history of South Asians in the US.
Excerpt:
We strive to create a digital collection that reflects the diverse range of experiences of South Asians in the United States, with a particular emphasis on collecting materials on the following topics:· Pre-1965 immigrants and visitors· The Bellingham Riots· South Asian American political involvement and activism· Professional associations and labor organizations· Regional and community organizations· Religious organizations and places of worship· Community newspapers· Student organizations· Prominent South Asian American artists, filmmakers, writers, musicians and intellectuals
It's an ongoing project, continuing to invite contributions and materials from those of us who are forming history simply by being alive on the earth at this time. And that's the important thing. Browsing these stories is interesting, but it's more than that. This archive assumes a view of history that implies we're all part of it. One of the listed SAADA values reads: "History is not a spectator sport."No, indeed. At the very least, even when we're helpless to counter tides of hate and destruction around us, as participants in the making of our own personal histories, we can be thoughtful in our actions. How we view the past has everything to do with how we choose to live in the present.