Asian Americans for Action

In 1969, Shizuko "Minn" Matsuda and Kazu Iijima founded the Asian Americans for Action (Triple A or AAA) in New York City. The two women were inspired by the Black Power movement and originally planned a Japanese American political and social action movement, but ultimately chose to make it a pan-Asian organization, inviting members of all Asian ethnic groups to join. The story goes that it was Iijima's son, Chris Iijima, who convinced them to broaden their focus.

Triple A became part of the wider Asian American movement which channelled anger and discontent among Asian Americans during the 1960s and beyond. AAA was largely an East Coast movement, while a number of other Asian organizations, including the Asian American Political Alliance (AAPA), operated primarily on the West Coast.