13TH ANNUAL ASIAN PACIFIC AMERICAN CITY ADVOCACY

New York, NY - Over 100 community members, service providers, advocates and elected allies will virtually gather today at 1 PM EST for a Teach-in on COVID-19 and its Impact on the APA Community. This event is a part of the 13th Annual Asian Pacific American City Advocacy, led by the Coalition for Asian American Children & Families (CACF) under the 15% & Growing Campaign. As a collective voice demanding equitable funding for the APA community, the 15% & Growing Campaign unites over 45 Asian-led and serving organizations across New York City to advocate for a fair budget. 

Over the past year, COVID-19 has devastatingly impacted APA New Yorkers by exacerbating the systemic inequities that were already facing our communities prior to the pandemic. Asian Americans have experienced the largest increase in joblessness of all major racial groups in NYC, with an unemployment rate of 25.6% as of May 2020. Asian Americans are also 2x more likely to test positive for COVID-19 than their white counterparts, yet less likely to be tested at all. In 2020, Asian-related hate crimes also increased by 867% in New York City.

Alongside these rising challenges, APAs face barriers to healthcare, education, employment, housing, food security, violence prevention and civic participation that are critical to becoming contributing members of this City and State. These issues vary across communities and rely heavily upon Asian-led and serving organizations to fill in the gaps of services through culturally inclusive and language accessible services that have the most impact on addressing the needs of our communities. Yet our community based organizations never receive adequate funding to support their vital services. In FY 2022, APA organizations received only 4.65% of City Council discretionary dollars and less than 1.5% of social service contract dollars. Current levels of public funding for the APA community also remain disproportionate to our community’s expansive needs and growing population, which now exceeds over 15% of New York City. Now more than ever, providing equitable funding to the APA community is necessary in the recourse and revitalization of New York City. The 15% and Growing Campaign's FY 2022 Budget Priorities are to restore and expand funding to initiatives that address the following issue areas: 

1) Communities of Color Nonprofit Stabilization Fund (CCNSF)

2) Children and Youth Services 

3) Older Adult Services 

4) Immigrant Services 

5) Health and Well-being

6) Housing and Economic Security 

7) Violence Prevention and Intervention 

8) Immigrant Workforce Development