Included in this newsletter:

• CPAF Invited to Join President Biden

• Watch us on LA This Week

• Nationwide Engagement: Conference Participation

• Mark your Calendar

CPAF Invited to Join President Biden 

In September, CPAF’s Executive Director, Patima Komolamit, was invited to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) in Washington D.C. Hosted by the Office on Violence Against Women (OVW), a component of the U.S. Department of Justice, attendees participated in panel discussions, interactive breakout sessions, and collaborative roundtables. The event brought together community leaders and organizations from across the United States, including survivors and advocates, to reflect on the progress made and the ongoing collective work to be done in enhancing federal responses to domestic violence, sexual violence, stalking, dating violence, and other interconnected forms of gender-based violence (GBV).

In a special invitation to join President Biden on stage, Patima gathered with a select group of community and organization leaders at the White House. As a VAWA grantee, CPAF was honored to be able to share the importance of culturally specific services and the direct impact federal funding has on the lives of Asian American and Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander (AANHPI) survivors.  

VAWA was passed in 1994 to create and support comprehensive, cost-effective responses to domestic violence, sexual assault, dating violence, and stalking. VAWA is up for renewal every five years, allowing opportunities for reauthorization to expand access to marginal communities, increase protections, and modernize laws. CPAF continues to advocate for inclusive services and programs at the local, state, and federal levels. 

Watch us on LA This Week

Tiffany Lim, CPAF’s Community Youth Organizer, was interviewed on LA This Week while presenting the first in a series of workshops to college-bound youth called “Orientation to Financial Empowerment” at the Chinatown Branch Los Angeles Public Library. The workshop covered topics such as, identifying financial abuse, the personal and cultural contexts in which we learn about money, and how to reflect on harm experienced. The session helped participants to consider what healthy financial habits look like and ways to establish personal boundaries regarding finance and relationships. Click on the image below or at this link to watch now. 

Nationwide Engagement: Conference Participation

This summer, CPAF presented at the National Sexual Assault Conference (NSAC) in Washington D.C. and the Office on Violence Against Women Culturally Specific Services Program Conference (OVW-CSSP) in San Francisco. As a multilingual and multicultural agency, these convenings provided a space for CPAF to share key outreach strategies and helpful tools for developing partnerships. CPAF’s engagement with diverse Asian American and Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander (AANHPI) populations provides opportunities for nuanced approaches to community outreach, such as partnering with ethnic media and developing in-language brochures, as well as working together with established groups.

Recognizing the unique and creative possibilities of reaching survivors and building solidarity, CPAF began a pilot program in 2020, hiring Outreach Specialists to work alongside the respective Chinese, Korean, Japanese, and Thai communities. During the NSAC and OVW-CSSP conferences, CPAF shared the different outreach methods being used to raise awareness about domestic violence and sexual assault in the Japanese community. 

Ayako Muroi, CPAF’s Senior Virtual Community Outreach Specialist for the Japanese community, has been actively engaging with Japanese media. This includes an interview on Sakura Radio, the only Japanese-language Internet radio station in the U.S. (listen here) and being a guest speaker for a popular Japanese podcast, Dokuzetsu American Life (listen here). The episode has been listened to over 50,000 times, with many listeners reaching out to Ayako, asking for help and for more information about CPAF. Ayako also helped to update and redesign CPAF’s Japanese in-language brochures, below. She also provides information, resources, and education through her own your_voice24 Instagram account.  

Mark your Calendar

CPAF is partnering with Nellita’s Craft in Little Tokyo to recognize healthy relationships and stand up for violence-free communities during CicLAvia on Sunday, October 13 from 11AM to 1PM. Grab your bike, skates, or walking shoes and stop by to see us at our family-friendly Zine-making tent. No crafting or art skills necessary!