SAADA was established in 2008 to preserve, document, and share the relatively unknown history of the South Asian American experience.

Financial support is provided through individual donations with grant funding from the Mellon Foundation, Institute of Museum and Library Services, and National Endowment for the Humanities, among others.

The campaign's purpose is to create a sustainable organization to raise awareness and preserve the historical and cultural stories of the South Asian American community.

[3] Current SAADA collections include materials about Dalip Singh Saund, the first congressperson of Indian heritage, the Gadar Party, Fazlur Rahman Khan, Bhai Bhagwan Sing Gyanee and the Kerala Catholic Association of Southeast Michigan.

From the archive, SAADA has launched several projects to promote visual art and oral histories within the South Asian American community.