The Coalition for Asian American Children and Families (CACF) strongly denounces the rising violence against Asian Americans, especially those who are East Asian-presenting. But we know we need to do more than denounce racism. Almost a year ago, CACF coordinated a letter of solidarity denouncing anti-Asian hate violence which was signed by almost 300 individuals, organizations large and small from across communities of color, academics, and elected officials. We believe anti-Asian racism is a concern of ALL communities, and we believe the only solutions to the complex challenges we are facing today will involve sustained solidarity and a commitment to investing in communities of color, which must be led by our City leadership -- the Mayor, the Public Advocate, and the City Council.

We call on our City leaders to convene our communities together NOW in an effort to design solutions that center restorative justice practices and not over-policing; that increase community education efforts on rights; and that invest in culturally responsive and language accessible health and social services aimed to address trauma and healing.

We are keenly aware of the fear in our communities, and the need to ensure safety in all communities. CACF’s continues our commitment to working in solidarity, centering a definition of safety as the presence of wellness and healing. We believe in the importance of ensuring that survivors and communities can heal from these incidents now, and importantly, that we address root causes with communities together so that this doesn’t continue.

Most recently, CACF is working to engage in education and consciousness-building through launching our next cohort of the Asian American Social Justice Leadership Institute (SJLI) this week and for the next 8 weeks, which will be addressing the recent uptick in anti-Asian violence. And, we are ensuring strong relationships across communities of color in our budget, health and education advocacy campaigns as we demand the resources and community investment that we need in an incredible time of vulnerability. That is where CACF can and does create the most impact. We believe the long-term safety of all our communities requires an approach that will ensure the health and well-being in neighborhoods across New York City, and an approach that is not reactionary and based on heightened fears.

CACF is dedicated to continuing the work necessary, in solidarity with communities of color, immigrant communities, and other marginalized communities, to dismantle systems of racism that have long impacted all of us, including Asian Americans.

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Anyone who has experienced or witnessed anti-Asian violence or harassment can report it to the Stop AAPI Hate Reporting Center, and to the New York Attorney General's Office through their hotline at 1-800-771-7755 or email civil.rights@ag.ny.gov. Click here for a training on How to Respond to anti-Asian/American Harassment. For more information, click here.