Asian Fortune Your source for all things Asian American
By Jennie L. Ilustre
Help is on the way for Asian American and Pacific Islander hate crime victims and their families. In a first of its kind program, this help will be swift and comprehensive. It will also be available on a nationwide basis.
The Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) Crime Victims & Education Fund will provide “high-speed, targeted relief assistance to help support the immediate costs faced by the victim and their family, including medical expenses,” rent and car payments.
The National Asian Pacific American Bar Association (NAPABA) and its affiliate, the Georgia Asian Pacific American Bar Association (GAPABA), will launch this program “in the coming months” to provide all-out help to hate crime victims and their families .
The Fund would also support educational and awareness programs. The goal: To reduce violence and bias targeting the AAPI community.
NAPABA and GAPABA announced their plan on the one-year anniversary of the horrific shootings in Atlanta spas, in which eight people were killed. Six of the victims were Asian Americans.
Community leader Bing C. Branigin lauded the program in a text message. She said: “This is such a generous and much-needed assistance for hate crime victims, as well as their families. I hope corporate donors and other AAPI organizations will support this worthy program. I wish this program great success, and commend NAPABA and GAPABA for coming up with this idea.”
She added: “The Asian American community must always be vigilant, as the violent attacks continue, especially against the elderly. Women, in particular, whether young or old, have mostly been the targets of such attacks.”
‘National Network of Support’
“The tragic attacks on Asian American communities continue,” said A.B. Cruz III, Acting President of NAPABA. “As we receive requests for legal assistance, we recognized the need for more comprehensive support for victims, including for mental health. Through this partnership with GAPABA, we will support the growing need for a coordinated national network of support for victims of hate.”
Remarked Timothy Wang, President of GAPABA: “We are proud to partner with NAPABA and leverage its scale, infrastructure, and know-how to expand this initiative and amplify its impact.”
He added: “We believe this fund is the first of its kind, and it fills a vital need by providing funds to people when they need it the most. Car and rent payments are the last thing anyone should have to think about following a hate incident.”
GAPABA President Wang noted that a year ago, the AAPI community was “rocked by an act of hate and misogyny“ during the Atlanta mass shootings. In response, GAPABA not only provided “direct legal and financial support to the families, but also organized a perpetual fund to support future victims.”
Q & A
What is a hate crime?
The U.S. Department of Justice defines a hate crime as “a crime motivated by bias against race, color, religion, national origin, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity or disability.”
What is the difference between a “hate crime” and a “hate incident”?
Hate crimes often involve harassment and a violent crime. Hate incidents include verbal harassment and shunning (deliberately avoiding Asian Americans).
When will the Fund start?
The Fund will start “in the coming months.“ There is no confirmed date as yet for the launch of the Fund. The program is still in the planning stages, with all aspects being thoroughly considered for a timely, comprehensive assistance on a nationwide basis.
Who are covered in the Fund assistance?
Asian American and Pacific Islanders anywhere in the U.S. who are hate crime victims.
How would Asian American hate crime victims avail themselves of this assistance?
Requests will be made accessible in conjunction with NAPABA’s incident reporting form. The Fund will also work with local AAPI community-based organizations to identify and direct support to needed individuals.
Where will NAPABA and GAPABA get its funding?
NAPABA, GAPABA and numerous personal and corporate donors will provide the initial endowment for the Fund.
What strengths do NAPABA and GAPABA bring to their partnership to insure its success?
GAPABA President Timothy Wang noted NAPABA’s “scale, infrastructure, and know-how to expand this initiative and amplify its impact.”
GAPABA has experience in providing this unique, comprehensive assistance. The Fund will expand GAPABA’s program started in reaction to the March 16 Atlanta shootings last year, in which six of the eight victims who were killed were Asian Americans. GAPABA provided direct legal and financial support to the affected Atlanta families. It also organized “a perpetual fund to support future victims.”
About NAPABA, GAPABA
The National Asian Pacific American Bar Association (NAPABA) represents the interests of over 60,000 Asian Pacific American legal professionals and nearly 90 national, state, and local APA bar associations.
NAPABA is a leader in addressing civil rights issues confronting APA communities: 1) Through its national network, NAPABA provides a strong voice for increased diversity of the federal and state judiciaries; 2) advocates for equal opportunity in the workplace; 3¬) works to eliminate hate crimes and anti-immigrant sentiment, and 4) promotes the professional development of people of all backgrounds in the legal profession.
Founded in 1993, the Georgia Asian Pacific American Bar Association (GAPABA) is a registered affiliate of NAPABA. it is one of the leading affinity bar associations in Southeastern U.S.
GAPABA has over 600 members. Among its members are general counsel of major corporations, elected officials, judges and public servants, and partners at top-ranked firms.
The GAPABA Law Foundation, GAPABA’s charitable arm, has raised and donated over $100,000 annually to organizations that serve the community and provide pro bono (free) legal services.
OCA-APA Advocates
Other AAPI organizations are also actively doing their share to address racism against the community.
Thu Nguyen, Executive Director of OCA-Asian Pacific American Advocates, said the organization has undertaken a multi-sided approach in fighting anti-Asian racism.
She said in an email: “Since the Atlanta spa shootings one year ago, OCA has called on state and local governments to specifically investigate anti-Asian bias in their hate crimes response and bolster access to mental health and housing resources, among other preventative measures.”
She added that “OCA-Asian Pacific American Advocates chapters host regular bystander intervention training sessions.” OCA also continues to collaborate with researchers to study hate incident trends over time.
“Our hearts have been shattered by the deaths of Christina Yuna Lee, Michelle Go, GuiYing Ma, and now this latest assault in Yonkers,” she stressed. “The appalling attack is yet another reminder that Asian American women elders continue to face disproportionate, hateful violence–and much more needs to be done to ensure the safety of our communities.”
Stop AAPI Hate
Stop AAPI Hate continues to track hate incidents, such as verbal harassment and shunning, on its website. It receives reports on racism from the victims themselves, their family members, friends and other independent sources. Since it started this service in 2020, when the pandemic started, it has become the go-to source of the Mainstream Media, as well as the nation’s think tanks.
Stop AAPI Hate founders said in an email: “AAPI communities across the country continue to experience enormous amounts of pain and suffering. We need to continue to advocate for victim services and violence prevention efforts.”
To report hate crime or hate incidents, go to https://stopaapihate.org and click on “Report an Incident.”
Stop AAPI Hate received about 10,370 reports of hate incidents from March 2020 to September 2021. An NBC News February report by Kimmy Yam noted that latest research showed hate crimes against the Asian American community have reached some “unprecedented levels.”
The report cited the Center for the Study of Hate and Extremism, which found that compared to the year prior, anti-Asian hate crime increased by 339 percent in 2021. New York, San Francisco, Los Angeles and other cities surpassed their record numbers in 2020.
