Mobilizing #UnitedThroughLove

Happy Summer! As we close the second quarter of our #UnitedThroughLove theme - Organizing Community, we are excited to share the different ways CPAF mobilized the community.

Annual Community Program Staff Retreat

 
 

Since 2021, staff and interns from the community program (16+ people) have come together to reconnect, reflect, relearn and celebrate each other’s work and identify our successes and challenges to the work that we do in the communities across LA County and nearby counties. With the goals and objectives to strengthen the team dynamics and build the sense of agency and belonging among the team, we review and reflect on achieved program outputs and outcomes and evaluate our effectiveness, efficiency and quality of our services and programs. Below is a snapshot of the Community Program outputs and outcomes from this past year.

  • CPAF engaged with and trained 126 youth and youth leaders and 77 school administrators, community partners’ staff, and community members/leaders to address the root causes of violence and identify culturally specific and responsive services/support to API communities.

  • CPAF trained and supported 114 parents and community partners’ staff to carry on parenting with nonviolence practices in API communities.

  • CPAF conducted 122 presentations to 2,901 participants and community members about CPAF services, DV and SA 101, healthy relationship, and trauma-informed care.

  • CPAF delivered 21 trainings to 694 participants through advocate trainings, decoding language and culture training and other trainings incorporating trauma-informed lens, culturally specific and culturally responsive services in their programs.

  • CPAF organized and attended 30 community events with 531 participants from API communities.

  • CPAF also continued to engage in coalitions and collaboratives across LA, California, and nationwide, attending 419 meetings and collaborating with 5,300 participants across the country to discuss the intersectionality of gender-based violence work.

Juneteenth

In CPAF's commitment to just and equitable policies and practices and as an anti-racist organization, our office was closed on Monday, June 20th in observance of Juneteenth.

In our allyship with other BIPOC, we continue to have meaningful discussions about recognizing the holiday in our respective communities and encourage others to learn more about the importance of Juneteenth.

"Juneteenth (short for “June Nineteenth”) marks the day when federal troops arrived in Galveston, Texas in 1865 to take control of the state and ensure that all enslaved people be freed. The troops’ arrival came a full two and a half years after the signing of the Emancipation Proclamation. Juneteenth honors the end to slavery in the United States and is considered the longest-running African American holiday. On June 17, 2021, it officially became a federal holiday." -Excerpt from History.com

We also love the article "What is Juneteenth?" by Henry Louis Gates originally published on The Root, which can be found on PBS.org's African American History blog.

PRIDE

Happy PRIDE month! In June, CPAF celebrated the lives and experiences of LGBTQIA+ individuals.

CPAF staff walked in a PRIDE march on Pioneer Blvd. in Artesia organized by South Asian Network (SAN), in collaboration with CPAF.  
 
Also, youth in the Know Your Roots program, which promotes healthy relationships and reflection on identity and community, reflected on sexuality and heteronormativity.

Below we share a few quotes from the youth participants.

“I feel like there’s a lot of stereotypes and misconceptions about sexual orientation, which makes it easily misunderstood.”

“I identify as queer and there is a lot of vastness in that term and folks mistake that for questioning sometimes. I am actually really confident in my identity, but folks assume that queer is questioning.” 

"I talk more with my friends. We are pretty much all on the same page of wanting positive queer relationships but they are not modeled for us." 

API Youth Forum Recap

The API Youth Forum took place on June 18th. We want to give a BIG thank you to all the youth organizers, community performers, staff, volunteers, and to the Boys & Girls Club of West San Gabriel Valley for hosting the event! Check out the photos and videos of the exciting performances by SAHARA, La Yue Opera, and FASCA LA here: API Youth Forum 2022.

As seen in our impact report, CPAF's ability to adapt and meet the needs of clients and the community relies on your continued support and engagement. June 30 is the last day of our current program year. Make your gift today!

Rucha Tadwalkar