Asian+American Stories: Georgette Bhathena

What do you do at TAAF, and what brought you here?

I joined TAAF in 2023 as the Chief Programs Officer, and I oversee strategy and programming for key areas of focus. This has been my first experience working inside of an AAPI-led organization. At TAAF I’ve been able to leverage my background in impact and purpose-driven work that I'd done over the course of my career. I think also, for many folks, the pandemic was a time of reflection. With the uptick in anti-Asian hate facing our community, I wanted to get more involved and figure out how I could help. I also worried about my own family. I'm originally from Seattle, and my mom was still living in Seattle by herself, elderly and isolated, and I was worried about her physical safety and feeling a little helpless. When I learned of TAAF's mission of increasing safety, belonging and prosperity, I was really compelled to do something.

You mentioned that you grew up in Seattle. Can you speak more about what it was like growing up there, and how you identified?

Growing up in Seattle, there was quite a robust community of AAPIs, but it was at a time when the focus was more on assimilation. My mom immigrated from the Philippines and my dad from India. I remember once asking if we could speak a second language at home, like Tagalog or Parsi. And my parents said to really focus on English, and that education will be the key to doing well and being able to live out the American dream. The idea was to be part of the mainstream—something different from our own household and background.
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Given my multiethnic background, I never felt a real sense of belonging, even in the intra-Asian space. I never felt Indian enough. I never felt Chinese enough or Filipino enough. And I didn't know anyone who was like me. Because of that, I was always trying to find a place that I could call home and feel like it was my community. It wasn’t until college, when I went to the University of Washington and started taking ethnic studies and Asian American studies classes, that I started feeling more empowered, and more excited about the contributions of AAPI's to American history. I began to realize that we’re part of the fabric of American history. It's not something separate and apart. And I think with that sense of empowerment, then I felt more of a sense of belonging and feeling more part of the mainstream.

Having a mixed heritage within the Asian American community, did you ever feel that people saw you differently than how you perceived yourself?

Yes, I mean, people called me names like “banana,” saying that I was yellow on the outside and white on the inside because I did well in school. So I tried not to let it affect me. But I think people didn’t know what to make of someone with mixed Asian American heritage. They couldn’t recognize and acknowledge how diverse the AAPI community is. Fast forward to now, I live in California and my kids share my cultural heritage, and they’re Polish American as well. It’s different for them. I remember a time when my older son, Ben, was in preschool arguing with a friend about who was more Asian. Ben said, "Well, I'm four things, so I'm more Asian than you." It turns out, that's not quite how it works! But you can see how things have changed over the years.
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How do you instill pride in being Asian+American in your kids?

We have a lot of conversations about where our ancestors came from and their history, as well as the contributions of Asian Americans in the United States. And I think there's this celebration of diversity now, that means you don't feel like you have to be less than of anything—it really is a plus. So learning all of the multicultural facets of a mixed heritage makes you more rather than less. And that's really powerful. When I can, I bring my kids along to TAAF events, where they can also see different paths to success. Historically, there's been a focus on what success looks like in terms of doctors or lawyers, and now it's also around professional athletes like Jeremy Lin. I think we’re broadening the definition of what success is and what it means to be Asian+American. 

Looking back at your own childhood, is there anything that you wish you could say to your younger self about being Asian American?

I wish I could give myself permission to really celebrate the beauty of that mixed heritage, and feel a sense of confidence in it. To see that it’s actually additive. So I would tell my younger self that each of us is unique, and each of us contributes to the amazing fabric of being American, while also honoring the strength, the resilience, and the bravery of my parents being immigrants to this country. I think the immigrant experience is something that really is common within the AAPI community, but also across many different ethnic groups that have come to the United States to forge a path for their families.

What does being Asian+American mean to you?

To me Asian+American means building upon the contributions of my parents and of our ancestors in this country—it's a story of strength and resilience and hope. All of us have an immigrant story in our backgrounds to be proud of. Bringing our stories together is what connects us and creates that humanity.

Learn more about our Asian+American campaign and how you can get involved here.

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