SAAAC wasn’t the only group of Asian student activists on campus. Cultural clubs also doubled as political centers for students to come together and share ideas, oftentimes addressing problems and concerns that the larger collective tends to neglect.

The Indian Cultural Exchange, now known as the Indian Cultural Association (ICA), served as a platform for Emory’s South Asian students to congregate and discuss how to direct their own energies.

In 1998, the ICA gave its members a chance to join in on a wider community by participating in the 10th South Asian Students Alliance (SASA) Conference, an annual event that attracted speakers and attendees from over 60 universities. This conference invited civil rights activist and former Atlanta mayor Andrew Young as a keynote speaker to discuss how the struggle for South Asian liberation mirrored that of the Civil Rights movement. The conference also discussed the state of the South Asian American community, questioning whether their community really aligned with the wider Asian American identity.