CACF’s 18% and Growing Campaign Kicks Off 17th Annual City Advocacy Week
NEW YORK, New York (March 3, 2025) --- The Coalition for Asian American Children and Families (CACF) and its 18% And Growing Campaign kicked off its 17th annual AAPI City Advocacy Week on Monday, March 3 to highlight the need for a fair and equitable New York City Budget that centers the needs of those who struggle the most.
Throughout the week CACF and our 18% and Growing partners will be meeting with City Councilmembers and staffers across the five boroughs to advocate for policies and programs that uplift the health, safety, and language access needs of New York City’s AAPI residents.
In order to get our communities the support they need, the 18% And Growing Campaign will be centering the following critical funding needs during City Advocacy Week 2025:
Enhance the AAPI Community Support Initiative to $7.5 million to expand social services by AAPI serving community-based organizations to address the fiscal equity needed to build bridges between culturally competent and linguistically accessible services and the most vulnerable AAPI New Yorkers.
Enhance the Communities of Color Nonprofit Stabilization Fund (CCNSF) to $7.5 million to provide capacity building support to Black, Latinx, and AAPI-led community-based organizations.
Enhance the Access Health NYC Initiative to $4.5 million to support community-based organizations (CBOs) who provide education, outreach, and assistance to marginalized New Yorkers on how to access health care and coverage.
“At a time when so many New Yorkers are worried about the future of the programs and social services they rely on, it’s more important than ever for New York City Council to invest in initiatives that uplift the needs of every day people,” said CACF’s Co-Executive Directors Anita Gundanna and Vanessa Leung. “City Council-supported programs like the AAPI Community Support Initiative, Communities of Color Nonprofit Stabilization Fund, and the Access Health Initiative provide critical resources to community-based organizations across the city that are doing the vital work of supporting our communities, regardless of their language fluency or immigration status. We urge the Council to support the enhancement of these critical programs in the New York City Budget.”
Since 2009, the 18% And Growing Campaign has brought the issues affecting Asian American Pacific Islander (AAPI) New Yorkers to the forefront in the negotiations around the New York City budget. From March 3-March 6, members of the Campaign — a unified coalition of 90+ AAPI-led and serving community-based organizations from across the five boroughs — will meet for City Councilmembers from across the five boroughs to advocate for policies center the health, safety, and language access needs of New York City’s AAPI residents.
The name of the 18% and Growing Campaign hails from the fact that AAPI New Yorkers comprise more than 18% of the City’s population, and are the fastest growing racial community in New York City, State, and the country at large. But despite the growth of both the AAPI population and the reach of the 18% And Growing Campaign, funding for AAPI communities in New York City has historically lagged behind.
The 18% And Growing Campaign includes CBOs from across New York City who have come together to advocate for a budget that is fair and equitable. Several explain why equitable funding is our campaign’s major priority below.
“Garden of Hope serves a historically underserved Chinese immigrant community in New York City, where victims of domestic violence, sexual assault, human trafficking, child abuse, elder abuse, and hate crimes face significant barriers to accessing necessary services. The city’s largest Chinese immigrant enclave remains underserved, with 95% of survivors speaking little or no English and 93% living in poverty. Limited resources, language barriers, and a lack of culturally competent services prevent many from seeking help through mainstream channels,” said Garden of Hope Executive Director Kristen Shi. “Our organization bridges this gap by providing critical, culturally sensitive services such as case management, legal assistance, housing support, and trauma-informed counseling, all aimed at empowering survivors. With fiscal equity, Garden of Hope can expand these essential programs, reach more victims, and strengthen our efforts to provide comprehensive support tailored to the unique needs of Chinese immigrant survivors.”
“Homecrest is currently overwhelmed, having provided over 92,000 services to 1,411 older adults across our three centers in FY 24. This surge in demand highlights the critical need for improved client management systems. The recent opening of our Sunset Park Center, which serves both the Asian and Hispanic communities in the neighborhood, has further exposed the gap in providing culturally competent social services,” said Homecrest Community Services’ Executive Director Wai Yee Chan. “With the Communities of Color Nonprofit Stabilization Fund (CCNSF) Grant we were awarded in FY25, we will be able to implement a cloud-based CRM system. Without this, we will risk falling behind and limiting our ability to provide essential services to those who need them most.”
For more information, please email Lakshmi Gandhi, CACF’s Senior Communications Coordinator, at lgandhi@cacf.org.
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