AAPI Heritage Month Highlight — Abigail Edwards
In celebration of Asian American Pacific Islander Heritage Month, the People of Color Employee Engagement Group is highlighting staff members from the national office. This installment features Abigail Edwards, coordinator of the office of inclusion.
Abigail Edwards had never heard of Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month until last year, but she says the celebration has opened the door for her to discuss her Indian identity.
“I felt like I finally had an avenue or a space to talk about my identity in a meaningful way,” said Edwards, a coordinator of inclusion who came to the NCAA as a postgraduate intern in 2020. “I think the month is so significant for me because it was the starting point of using my voice to define myself as an Indian woman and not just a woman of color — because that’s how I used to describe myself to others.”
Until she was 7, Edwards lived with her parents in Hyderabad in south central India, where she learned to speak Hindi, Telugu and English. After her mother was transferred to a position in New York City and found a place to live, Edwards flew over by herself. Her parents separated the next year, and she and her mom have lived in the U.S. ever since.
Abigail Edwards (right) and her mother, Miriam Edwards-Buzadzija, both wore custom lehengas for her mother’s wedding. (Photos courtesy of Abigail Edwards)
Edwards said growing up with a foot in two worlds was a challenge. “I didn’t feel like I was Indian enough for my Indian friends,” she said. “But I also felt like I wasn’t American enough for my American friends. And so, trying to figure out where I fit was really hard.”
Since much of the culture and traditions in India are tied to Hinduism, Islam, Sikhism, Buddhism and Jainism, Edwards, whose family is Christian, felt even more disconnected from her South Asian roots. Though she didn’t embrace many Indian traditions as a child, she began incorporating more of that culture as a young adult. When she visits home, her mom paints her hands with intricate mehndi, or henna, patterns, and she is now proud of the traditional clothes she once called “hot and stuffy.”
Edwards enjoys having her mother paint intricate henna patterns, known as mehndi in India, on her hands when she visits home. Her mom does the designs freehand.
“That’s the thing about the traditions and cultures in India — there is so much beauty in them that I’ve had the opportunity to appreciate in a more meaningful way now,” she said.
For her 2020 graduation from Smith, she was able to combine one of those beautiful Indian traditions with the college’s Illumination Night tradition. Because the pandemic prevented students from being on campus, which is normally lit up with paper lanterns the night before commencement, the college asked alumni and others throughout the world to send photos of celebratory lights. Edwards’ mom sent a picture of their small lamps, called diyas, that are lit for Diwali, the festival of light.
When Edwards graduated from Smith in May of 2020, the college held a Global Illumination Night, gathering photos of lights from the Smith community throughout the world. Edwards’ mother sent this photo of their diyas, small lanterns used to celebrate the festival of lights. The college usually strings paper lanterns around the campus the night before commencement, but the pandemic prevented an in-person ceremony.
Though it hasn’t been easy, being an immigrant has made Edwards resilient and given her perspective for her work in inclusion, she said. As the dependent of an immigrant on a work visa, she wasn’t allowed to work or receive federal aid and feared being sent back to India when she turned 21. After high school, she walked on the lacrosse team at Queens College (New York) and spent a year navigating challenges while maintaining a strong academic record before Smith accepted her as an international transfer student and awarded her need-based aid.
Going to Smith and playing on the school’s lacrosse team changed the trajectory of her life, she said. Still, as her 21st birthday approached, she lived in constant fear of having to leave the country she calls home. The fall of her senior year, she received authorization to work, and she finally got her green card in October of 2020.
“When I think about who I am, I’m an Indian immigrant woman. And so this work, the diversity, equity and inclusion work I do, it’s personal,” said Edwards, who supports the office of inclusion’s race/ethnicity and international core areas.
“Now it just feels like the world has opened up for me, and the potential is limitless for what I can do in the future.”
