In this episode, Aparna shares her family's immigrant story. Her family opened the first Indian restaurant in Atlanta back in the 70s, which became a hub for South Asian communities in the South. Aparna takes us with her on the journey of what it meant to grow up being South Asian in the 70s (going to school as a young girl in the South and understanding her identity while at UGA.) Through her memories about her father's community organizing and her work today, Aparna highlights the importance of uplifting different forms of community advocacy like creating gathering spaces, preparing food, and organizing celebrations. Finally she talks about intergenerational healing in her family through the advocacy work she does today.
Aparna has served as Executive Director of Raksha since 1998. She started her career as a victim advocate in the City of Atlanta and helped train and coordinate the 1996 Olympic Crisis Response team. Much of Aparna’s work is focused on crime victimization and gender-based violence in immigrant communities and providing training on the needs of underserved communities. She has been faculty for Georgia’s statewide Victim Assistance Academy since its inception in 2005. Over the years, she has been a part of creating organizations like Tapestri, Inc and International Women’s House to meet the needs of immigrant and refugee survivors in Georgia. In 2023, She was listed in the 500 Most Influential Leaders in the 2023 Atlanta 500 list by Atlanta Magazine and serves on the board for two national organizations- The Asian Institute on Gender-Based Violence and South Asian Survivors, Allies, and Organizations Rising.