The Pakistani Students Association (PSA) has been around for many years, but it has gained a recent revival with the influx of Pakistani students at the University of Washington (UW) interested in joining. Beginning in fall 2001, five determined Pakistanis began to round up students to help organize an association where Pakistani students could get together, socialize, celebrate their culture, and increase awareness about Pakistan within the university.

During the 2001-02 school year, the PSA focused its energies on gaining members and building camaraderie among the students. The organization held general meetings, bowling nights, and picnics as a means to build up a strong membership core. To conclude the year, the PSA held a friendly cricket match and picnic with the South Asian Students Association (SASA).

PSA came into the 2002-2003 school year with a strong group of active members. Many of the events organized during that year have now become part of the PSA tradition. The first event organized was Chandraat, celebrating the end of the Islamic Calendar month of Ramadan and the coming of Eid. The event was a huge success, as over 150 women showed up to celebrate, enjoy snacks and do henna. As the first fundraising event for the PSA, Chandraat’s immense success and popularity gave the PSA financial standing to fund other events. The event has grown every year and has been firmly established as a PSA-UW tradition!

The organization’s second major event was the PSA-SASA-ISA Talent show: Desi Dhamaka. In 2003, it was put on by the three South Asian organizations, to emphasize unity among South Asian on campus by celebrating the common threads within their diverse culture. Desi Dhamaka has proved to be immensely popular, and has successfully grown every year. The event is now hosted together by six organizations: the PSA remains a proud host and participant. The PSA has put on its own comedy plays in DD over the last three years. Written, directed, and acted in by its own members, it has been hailed as one of the most entertaining acts of the evening. The plays have poked fun at the cultural issues such as arranged marriages, desis emigrating to and adjusting in American culture, stereotypes common about South Asians and India-Pakistan relations.

In the year 2004-2005, the PSA has continued all of its major events: Chandraat and Desi Dhamaka. Both have been very successful. Make sure you check them out again next year!

In addition we have held two forums with the Punjabi Heritage Society on the partition of 1947 and its effects. We have also collaborated with Tasveer, a nonprofit South Asian film organization and participated in film screenings and discussions about 1971 Civil War along with BSA (Bangladeshi Students Association). The officers plan to fundraise for social causes affecting Pakistanis, such as domestic violence, healthcare, and education. We hope to hold more discussions, movie screenings, lectures and a community summit in which we plan to invite guest speakers to speak on pertinent social and political issues, in an effort to raise awareness for topics not only specific to Pakistan, but also trans-national and trans-cultural issues mentioned above as well.

We hope you’d show your encouragement and support by coming out to these other events, as we work towards bridging cultural divides through better dialogue, and promoting unity by cherishing the common threads in our culture.