Hi! My name is Julie. I stumbled upon this site by chance and thought it was an awesome concept. I’ve never heard the term “Hapa” but I think its a cool one.
My mother is from the Philippines and has a some Spanish ancestry. My father is from Pakistan. I’ve been mostly raised with my mother’s family/culture/religion. I have 2 younger sisters and we grew up right outside New York City.
I love my Dad very much and there are aspects of his culture that I find interesting but over all I’m more comfortable with my Filipino heritage and generally identify myself as Filipino American. I’m very much aware that I don’t look like the typical Filipino but that’s how I feel inside.
It surprises people that my parents are still happily married (over 30 years) or that I can’t tolerate spicy food. I’m frequently mistaken for Mexican, Dominican, or some kind of Latina. I’m cool with that. I’ve had just about every reaction about my heritage from fascination, awe, to outright disgust (not everyone thinks a mixed heritage is cool unfortunately).
My family is a big melting pot and I couldn’t be happier any other way.
Hapa Voice 