The Asian Pacific Institute on Gender-Based Violence, in partnership with the National Organization of Asians & Pacific Islanders Ending Sexual Violence, Award over $10M in Grants to Support Asian American and Pacific Islander Survivors and their Children

June 8, 2023

API GBV

The Asian Pacific Institute on Gender-Based Violence (API-GBV) announced awards to 41 organizations to support culturally-specific, community-based projects supporting survivors of domestic violence and sexual assault from Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) communities across the U.S. and Pacific. The $13.2 million dollar initiative from the Office of Family Violence Prevention and Services (OFVPS) under the 2021 American Rescue Plan (ARP) will be the first time API-GBV will be distributing two years of funding to culturally specific organizations that serve sexual assault (SA) and domestic violence (DV) survivors in AAPI communities.

Under the ARP Support for Survivors Program, API-GBV will distribute subgrants through the Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault Capacity Building Fund to assist culturally specific organizations providing DV and SA services in Asian/Asian American, Native Hawaiian, Pacific Islander (AANHPI), and Middle Eastern (ME) communities in the United States and U.S. territories.

“API-GBV is honored and proud to support community-based organizations at the forefront of sexual assault and domestic violence work amid the COVID-19 pandemic. It is essential to have this kind of funding distributed to communities with organizations deeply rooted in their environmental and cultural awareness and expertise in supporting survivors,” said Monica Khant, Executive Director of API-GBV. “The AAPI community is often left out of the public narrative on sexual assault and domestic violence and through this important work we will have the opportunity to support organizations who directly support survivors in our communities.”

The ARP Support for Survivors Program will address the emergent needs of survivors, and the programs that serve them, resulting from the COVID-19 public health emergency. The work will also promote strategic partnership development and collaboration in responding to the COVID-19 public health emergency on survivors of SA and DV.

“As a partner of API-GVB in this effort, the National Organization of Asians & Pacific Islanders Ending Sexual Violence (NAPIESV) is looking forward to working with the funded organizations focusing on sexual violence to increase the availability of culturally specific and trauma-informed services to victims/survivors of sexual violence from the Asian & Pacific Islander communities nationally and in the U.S. Territories in the Pacific through this funding. '' said Mira Yusef, Executive Director at NAPIESV (NAPIESV is a program under Monsoon Asians and Pacific Islanders in Solidarity). “We also want to highlight the authentic inclusion of victim services for sexual violence that happens outside of the context of intimate partner violence. Victims of sexual violence outside of marital rape/intimate partner sexual violence from the API communities are usually provided services that are not specific to their needs as sexual assault victims/survivors.”

The organizations funded by the ARP Support for Survivors grant were identified by a committee of peer reviewers with extensive experience in the domestic violence and sexual assault fields, and working in AANHPI and ME communities in the U.S. Funding provided under the ARP Support for Survivors Program will advance API-GBV’s mission to disrupt gender-based violence, which causes physical, sexual, emotional, spiritual and economic harm within AAPI communities throughout the U.S. and U.S. territories. And, promote API-GBV’s core values of uplifting the voices and experiences of AAPI communities who are impacted by violence; building capacity through training and technical support for organizations who serve our communities; engaging allied communities and systems to create shifts in gendered cultural norms and address injustices; educate communities to mobilize them to prevent gender-based violence; and advocate for policies and practices that ensure access to essential rights and services.

Of the grantees selected, 15 projects support Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander communities and 14 projects support Middle Eastern communities, including projects focused on prevention, culturally specific services for Queer and Trans survivors, virtual services and data security, culturally rooted practices in healing and resiliency, and engaging men and youth. For a complete list of grantees, visit this link .

Name

State/

Territory

Website

Award Amount

Guma' Mami, Inc.

Guam

https://www.gumamami.net/

325,000

Pending Contract Finalization // A.J. Muste Memorial Institute (AF3IRM)

NY/CA

https://af3irm.org/af3irm/chapters/los-angeles/

300,000

Guam Coalition Against SA & FV (Our Medicine is Resistance)

Guam

https://www.rossamedicine.com/

325,000

Kilusan Wellness

CA

https://www.kilusanwellness.org/

325,000

Marshallese Educational Initiative

AR

https://www.mei.ngo/

225,000

Intersections, Inc.

American Samoa

https://intersectionsweb.com/

225,000

Tohge Corporation

Guam

https://www.tohgeguam.com/

325,000

Fractured Atlas (Moving Rasa)

NY

https://movingrasa.com/

325,000

Communities as One

CA

http://communitiesasone.org/

300,000

Research Advocacy Institute Gilgit Baltistan

TX

https://www.raaigb.org/

250,000

Asian Health Services (Banteay Srei)

CA

http://www.banteaysrei.org/

225,000

Pending Contract Finalization // (Queer Crescent)

CA

https://www.queercrescent.org/

300,000

Empowerment Works, Inc. (Sahiyo US)

CA

https://sahiyo.com/

250,000

Guam Coalition Against SA & FV (Ai Acupuncture)

Guam

https://www.aiacupuncture.com/

300,000

Transforming Generations

MN

https://www.transforminggenerations.org/

250,000

Am. Samoa Coalition Against DV & SA

American Samoa

https://ascadasv.page.tl/

200,000

Sikh Family Center

CA

https://sikhfamilycenter.org/

250,000

Pacific Community of Alaska

AK

https://www.pcalaska.org/

250,000

Raksha

GA

https://www.raksha.org

250,000

API Chaya

WA

https://www.apichaya.org/

220,000

UTOPIA

WA

https://utopiawa.org/

250,000

ManForward

MN

https://www.man-forward.org/

200,000

Victim Advocates Reaching Out

Guam

https://www.varoguam.org/

250,000

Community Refugee and Immigration Services

OH

https://www.crisohio.org/

200,000

AshaKiran, Inc.

AL

https://www.ashakiranonline.org/

222,000

Pennsylvania Immigrant & Refugee Women's Network

PA

https://www.pairwn.org/

150,000

Asian Women's Shelter

CA

https://www.sfaws.org/

250,000

Alliance for Community Transformation (California HMong Advocates Network - Building Our Future)

CA

http://alliance4community.org/CHAN-BOF/

250,000

Asian/Pacific Islander Domestic Violence Resource Project

DC

https://www.dvrp.org/

250,000

Noor Family Services Corporation

GA

https://noorfamilyservices.org/

210,000

Domestic Violence Action Center (Center for Pacific and Asian Communities)

HI

https://domesticviolenceactioncenter.org/

250,000

Effective Planning & Innovative Communication, Inc. (dba EPIC ’Ohana)

HI

https://www.epicohana.org/

250,000

Refugee & Immigrant Voices in Action (RIVA) (Ethnic Minorities of Burma Advocacy & Resource Center (EMBARC)

IA

https://www.embarciowa.org/

250,000

Arab American Family Services

IL

https://aafsil.org/

250,000

SEWA-AIFW

MN

https://www.sewa-aifw.org/

250,000

Asian Women United of Minnesota

MN

https://www.awum.org/

250,000

Kiran, Inc.

NC

https://www.kiraninc.org/

240,000

Laal NYC

NY

https://www.laalnyc.org/

250,000

Karen Society of Buffalo

NY

https://www.karenbuffalo.org/

250,000

Women for Afghan Women

NY

https://womenforafghanwomen.org/

250,000

Awaaz

TX

https://www.awaazsa.org/

150,000

Asians Against Domestic Abuse

TX

https://www.aadainc.org/

250,000

Utah Pacific Islander Health Coalition (Child and Family Empowerment Foundation)

UT

https://childandfamilyempowerment.com/

150,000

About Asian Pacific Institute on Gender-Based Violence

The Asian Pacific Institute on Gender-Based Violence (API-GBV) is a national resource center on domestic violence, sexual violence, trafficking, and other forms of gender-based violence in Asian/Asian-American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) communities. API-GBV envisions a world free of gender-based violence for communities with equal opportunities for all to thrive. For more information about API-GBV, visit www.api-gbv.org .

About FVPSA

Since 1984, the Family Violence Prevention and Services Act (FVPSA) has been an integral part of our nation’s public health response to domestic violence by providing funding, oversight, training, technical assistance, and guidance to emergency shelters, crisis hotlines, prevention programs, specialized resource centers, and a wide-range of federal, state, local and tribal partners across the United States. By addressing domestic violence as a public health epidemic, FVPSA’s reach is broad and changes lives. Each year, FVPSA-funded state and tribal programs serve more than 1.3 million victims and their dependents and respond to 2.7 million crisis calls; with these supplemental funds, FVPSA grant programs will be able to provide critical supports to even more families all across the country.

For more information on the ARP-FVPSA funding visit, https://www.acf.hhs.gov/fysb/policy-guidance/2021-fvpsa-495-million-american-rescue-plan-support-survivors-domestic. More information about the Office of Family Violence Prevention and Services (OFVPS) which administers FVPSA funding can be found at www.acf.hhs.gov/ofvps