Announcements:
We mourn the recent passing of our friend and colleague, Siu Ping Ma. Ms. Ma, PhD, LCSW, was one of the first Chinese social workers working in the Chinatown community and the Director of the Asian Bicultural Clinic at Gouverneur Hospital when the program was first established. She was a founding member of the New York Coalition for Asian American Mental Health and hosted our meetings for years in her clinic. Since then, she had taught and served in universities and community agencies focusing on training clinicians and building mental health services for the Chinese community at large.
Our History
We are so grateful to Melody Cao for her work in the recent months in capturing the roots of NYCAAMH. Watch the video below to learn more!
A Call to Action for NYCAAMH
The New York Coalition for Asian American Mental Health (NYCAAMH) joins our community partners in denouncing the rising hate crimes against Asian Americans and the ongoing history of violence against Asian Americans and other BIPOC throughout the nation.
We believe that these acts of destruction and hostility are part of deeply rooted structural racism and violence that impact people of color in our society. We refer specifically to racism and xenophobia as systems of power that are part of the many laws, policies, and beliefs that oppress and harm communities of color at multiple levels.
Historically, people in power have sought to maintain power and have done so through silencing, destroying, and dividing communities of color to perpetuate cycles of trauma and suffering across generations. Each time we learn about our community members getting harassed or killed, each time we discover how many more community members have been deported, each time we see how community members are denied access to services or given poor services, and each time we hear another harmful word or phrase about our community written into law or spoken by those in power, we are reminded of how Asian Pacific Islander Americans have been especially impacted by racism and other forms of oppression.
As mental health professionals who are working towards community wellness, we urge our government officials, human service leaders, and all those with power and privilege to challenge injustice, to overcome white supremacy and other oppressive ideologies, and to support our AAPI communities.
We call upon our NYCAAMH members to offer their human service expertise to help our communities heal from this collective trauma, empower one another in community care, and do this in solidarity to achieve community liberation. We also encourage our members to get others not already involved to learn more about our movement.
To view a list of resources and opportunities offered by community groups to combat racism via dialogues, bystander training and community involvement, please visit our Resources page.
If you have other relevant resources that you wish to share, please email us at nycaamh@gmail.com.
Upcoming Events Calendar
To add the NYCAAMH event calendar to your google calendar, click on the + on the bottom right of the calendar above.
NYCAAMH stands in solidarity with our Black communities
The New York Coalition for Asian American Mental Health (NYCAAMH) condemns the recent brutal killings of George Floyd, Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor, and numerous people of color, and stands in solidarity with Black communities to fight against racism and social injustice.
NYCAAMH is dedicated to supporting Asian Americans, particularly with the increased incidents of discrimination and racism during the COVID-19 pandemic. We believe that these xenophobic issues are part of deeply rooted structural racism and violence; these issues impact all minority groups and people of color in our society.
We must work to simultaneously counter both anti-Asian and anti-Black narratives. We believe that silence, especially among minority racial groups in the U.S.,has always been used as a tool by people in power, to benefit people in power. Rather than stay silent and remain complacent with existing injustices, we urge you to join us in elevating the voices of Black communities who have experienced over four centuries of oppression and racism.
We call upon members of NYCAAMH to act responsively through the following ways:
- Reflect and learn our own biases, racial identity, and experiences of injustices. Through critical reflection, determine ways to use our shared history and experiences to stand in solidarity. For additional support and conversation, we are committed to hold biweekly Peer Supervision and Planning/Organizing meetings to use our shared history and our unique strengths to grow individually and mobilize collectively. (Please check our website and Facebook Group for details).
- Sign and share “smart” petitions at theactionpac.com. With each signature, a letter is automatically sent to the appropriate state officials and attorneys responsible for each case. (The Action Pac petitions can also be signed at: justiceforbigfloyd.com; standwithbre.com; runwithmaud.com)
- Vote for local and state candidates who hold an anti-oppressive, anti-racist lens in their work, in the upcoming June primary election and November election in NYC. (mail-in absentee ballots can be requested due to COVID-19).
Our work will continue, and we hope you will join us in these efforts to fight against systemic oppression and stand with Black Lives.
March 2020 Update: In lieu of our bimonthly newsletter, we are sending you periodic and time-sensitive announcements that may be of interests to you during the Covid-19 pandemic. If there are virtual events and resources that will benefit the Asian American mental health community, please send the information to nycaamh@yahoo.com.
COVID-19 Resources
1. How to report COVID-19 based discrimination or hate crime:
- Dial 311 in NYC.
- Contact the New York Attorney General’s office at 1-800-711-7755, or email civil.rights@ag.ny.gov
- Contact the FBI at fbi.gov/tips
2. Report Bias Incidents and Hate Crimes
Anti-Asian Bias Reporting Form – The Asian American Federation (AAF) created a site where people can report bias incidents and hate crimes in English and 7 Asian languages. We’re encouraging our 70 member and partner agencies to spread the word to their clients and help them complete the forms if needed.
3. The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC):
“Discrimination against Asian American workers amidst COVID-19 is illegal”
4. Tips for Self Care among Asian Americans dealing with Racism during Covid-19 Pandemic:
https://www.huffpost.com/entry/self-care-advice-asian-americans_l_5e83a656c5b6a1bb764f0e45
5. Samaritans has launched its Mental Health Wellness Support Line
This a new service that has been developed where, instead of people calling us, we call them. Utilizing a different phone number from the hotline, individuals who are in distress, feeling overwhelmed, isolated, depressed or are having trouble coping with the many challenges and difficulties presented by the pandemic, can call to arrange for a ‘wellness” call from a Samaritans Hotline Volunteer.
How it works: Anyone who is interested in receiving a Mental Health Wellness Support call, should call the request line at (212) 673-3661 and leave a message with their name and phone number and a period of time that they can be reached, no sooner than 24 hours from when they leave the message. And a member of Samaritans staff will call.
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Our Mission
The New York Coalition for Asian Mental Health (NYCAAMH) strives to improve the quality of mental health care services in Asian American communities throughout the New York metropolitan area. Our mission is to address the unmet mental health care needs and service disparities of the Asian American population through advocacy, community service, professional development and collaboration with government and local service providers.