The Austin Asian Chamber of Commerce is an organization that educates and supports Asian American businesses in part of central Austin. In this interview, Marina Bhargava, the CEO of the organization, relates her personal outlooks on the Asian business and entrepreneurial scenes in Austin before and during the pandemic. According to Marina, Austin is a bustling entrepreneurial hub that has drawn many large corporations, which also attracted a growing population of Asian Americans that doubles every 20 years. Unfortunately, many small-sized restaurants and mom-and-pop stores were unable to weather the uncertainties, as well as discrimination, brought upon them during these tumultuous times. Towards the brighter side of the situation, Marina talks about the success of the Chamber’s Asian Eats Give campaign, which, running from April to July of 2020, provided funding to 15 restaurant members of the Chamber so that they can donate meals to the local community. Marina emphasizes the autonomy of this campaign, in that restaurants may choose who they want to make the donation, the only request being that they take pictures to document the efforts.

Emigrating from Malaysia to the United States back in 1986, Marina has long established herself as a leader in the business and non-profit sectors. Being an Asian American woman, Marina is able to overcome her underrepresented status through careful steps such as “taking the temperature of the room” when entering the meeting. She is optimistic that the year 2020 will be a catalyst for greater social justice for black and Latino communities, an important work that the Chamber also hopes to contribute to. During quarantine, Marina likes to stay healthy by cooking, practicing yoga, and taking introductory belly dancing classes.