The Organization of Pan Asian American Women is a public policy organization founded in 1976 and is the oldest organization in the United States devoted to addressing the concerns of Asian Pacific American women. It was established to increase the participation of Asian women in policy making and leadership roles. The organization also functions as a national network connecting Asian Pacific American women across sectors and communities. In addition, it provides leadership training and professional development to support members in obtaining employment and advancing their careers. Through these efforts, it works to raise awareness and advocate for issues affecting this intersectional group.
Shirley Hune, in her scholarship on Asian American and Pacific Islander women, situates their experiences within a broader historical narrative while highlighting the effects of exclusion and racialization in the United States. She emphasizes how prevailing assumptions about Asian identity have contributed to forms of marginalization, including the underrepresentation of womenâÂÂs voices in historical accounts. This absence is particularly evident in limited scholarship on Asian women detained at Angel Island during periods of heightened immigration restriction and wartime suspicion in the early twentieth century. Angel Island, located in San Francisco Bay, served as a primary immigration station for arrivals from Asia, many of whom faced prolonged detention and scrutiny. Hune notes that the experiences of women in these contexts were often overlooked in dominant narratives. With the rise of Second Wave feminism in the 1970s, Asian American and Pacific Islander women began to reclaim and reinterpret these histories, contributing to increased advocacy and organization. This broader movement helped inform the emergence of groups such as the Organization of Pan Asian American Women.