Society for Indonesian-Americans (SIA)

2011 Park Road, NW
Washington DC 20010
202-234-6392 phone
202-2347351 fax
georgetirajoh@yahoo.com email
http://www.SIAnews.org website

Area of Interest:
Organization - Indonesian-Americans In USA

Primary Ethnic Community Served:
Indonesian-American

Description:
For several decades a very large number of Indonesians have joined the flow of immigrants into the United States. Many of these have become U.S. citizens, while others have chosen to retain their Indonesian nationality and remain permanent residents. A growing number of their children and grandchildren have become part of the multicultural background that has shaped modern American society.

Usually, many of these Indonesian-Americans do not take part in the activities of Indonesian community oriented organizations in the United States. There are many reasons for their lack of interest, among others is their loss of fluency in speaking their mother tongue, Bahasa Indonesia, which naturally is the main language spoken among such gatherings. Other influencing factors include their different way of living and thinking. While the older generations of Indonesian-Americans tend to remain focused on the events happening in Indonesia, the younger generation is more preoccupied with the developments in the U.S.

While there are numerous community-based organizations in the U.S. that accommodate the interest and aspirations of Indonesians living or studying in the U.S., there seems to be no organization within the Indonesian communities in the U.S. that would cater to the interest and aspirations of the younger generation of Indonesian-Americans. Many of the existing Indonesian organizations are based on ethnicity and religion, leaving a gap for a group that can be multi-cultural, multi-ethic, and multi-religion. The Society for Indonesian-Americans hopes to fill this gap, not only for the Indonesian-American community, but also for any Indonesian interested in joining a group that does not discriminate based on ethnicity and religion.

Staff:
George Tirajoh Chairman / President
Hari Goeltom Vice President

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