Community Outreach and Engagement
Stop Hate Project
In direct response to the uptick of anti-Asian hate crimes and incidents in the San Gabriel Valley and broader Los Angeles County, as well as nationally, AYC started our Stop Hate Project in order to address racism, xenophobic harassment, and discrimination against vulnerable populations. By promoting diversity, inclusion, and building solidarity, our goal is to achieve zero hate in our communities. In 2021 with Asian Americans Advancing Justice – Southern California (AJSOCAL), AYC conducted a San Gabriel Valley Stop Hate Community Survey, with nearly 1/3 of respondents indicating that they or their families had experienced hate incidents based on their race or ethnicity in recent years. To address these instances of racism and xenophobia, AYC provides support to the community through various projects, including community outreach, training and workshops, youth development, and art-based cultural work.
AYC’s Stop Hate team is involved in community outreach to raise awareness of Stop Hate, educate community members on reporting hate crimes and incidents, and provide resources for victims of hate. In partnership with AJSOCAL and Right To Be, AYC translated Bystander Intervention Training materials to Chinese and since 2021 also facilitates regular trainings in Mandarin and Cantonese. AYC invests in youth development to raise awareness about the elements of hate, social justice, diversity, equity, and inclusion at local high school dream centers. Besides public and digital art campaigns, the program also supports local initiatives, such as LA vs. Hate’s Stronger Together mural project by local artist MariNaomi. The Stop Hate team also partners with community groups and local leaders to conduct community projects, such as a local steering committee, self-defense workshops, allyship trainings, API renewal space, and civilian patrol, in order to meet the community’s various needs.
For more information, contact:
- Heidi Lau (Cantonese and Mandarin) at 626-321-1096 or heidi.lau@aycla.org.
- Ileen Esquivel (Spanish) at 310-628-4047 or ileen.esquivel@aycla.org.
Community Relations
AYC’s Community Relations program helps limited English proficient community members connect to essential services and public benefits. The program provides Chinese-language education, outreach, and assistance relating to bills, taxes, internet, utilities, and telecommunication services.
Telecommunication Education Assitance in Multiple Languages (TEAMS) and Community Help and Awareness of Natural Gas and Electricity Services program (CHANGES)
The TEAM & CHANGES programs provide in-language services to consumers related to telecommunication and utility bills, including dispute resolution. The four main components for TEAM & CHANGES are outreach, consumer education, needs assistance, and complaint resolution. These programs are aimed to assist Chinese speaking clients with limited language capacity to overcome barriers in resolving, paying, and disputing their utility and telecommunication bills.
Connecting Low-Income Families (CLIF)
Internet for All Now is a campaign of the California Emerging Technology Fund and partners. The goal of the Internet for All Now is to demand that the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) take two critical steps to help close the Digital Divide.
Golden State Opportunity (GSO)
AYC increases awareness of the California Earned Income Tax Credit, Young Child Tax Credit, the Federal EITC as well as public benefits and predatory lending throughout the year. Outreach channels include phone calls, events, social media, press conferences, and workshops. See more resources here.
For more information, contact Florence Lin at (626) 230-1583 or florence.lin@aycla.org.
COVID-19 Outreach and Education
AYC’s COVID-19 Outreach and Education program is designed to reduce the disproportionate impact of COVID-19 on non-English speaking immigrant communities through close collaboration with LA County Department of Public Health, AAPI Equity Alliance, and community health clinic partners. By providing linguistically competent services and outreach, AYC’s team of community health workers organizes and supports community vaccine clinics, distributes Personal Equipment (PPE) and at-home tests, and delivers accurate, reliable information to the community on COVID-19 in Cantonese, English, Mandarin, Spanish, and Vietnamese.
For more information, contact Xuanyu (Julian) Zhu at (310) 628-4594 or xuanyu.zhu@aycla.org