New Report to be released on State of Safety for AAPI Women in the U.S.; Nearly 75% report experiencing racism, discrimination over the past year

For immediate release: March 1, 2022 

Media contact: media@napawf.org

Washington, DC – This evening, President Joe Biden took the unprecedented step of including the surge of violence and hate towards the Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) community in his first State of the Union address. 

As part of his domestic priorities and achievements, President Biden stated:

“While it often appears that we never agree, that isn’t true. I signed 80 bipartisan bills into law last year. From preventing government shutdowns to protecting Asian-Americans from still-too-common hate crimes to reforming military justice.” 

“We applaud President Biden for bringing visibility and support to the Asian American and Pacific Islander community during a time of heightened anti-Asian violence and rhetoric,” says Sung Yeon Choimorrow, executive director at the National Asian Pacific American Women’s Forum (NAPAWF).

“We have been advocating for the president and other elected officials to acknowledge hate crimes against the AAPI community and it’s disproportionate impact on Asian American and Pacific Islander women. The recent tragic deaths in New York City and Albuquerque, nearly one year after the Atlanta Spa shootings, is yet another sobering reminder of the current state of safety for AAPI women.”

Reports of hate crimes against AAPI individuals have jumped 339% over the past year. Within the AAPI community, women are twice as likely to report hate incidents such as verbal harassment, physical assault, and workplace discrimination.  

In a new survey measuring the state of safety for AAPI women, NAPAWF found that nearly 75% of respondents had personally experienced racism and/or discrimination within the past twelve months, with more than half identifying a stranger or someone they don’t know as the perpetrator. 

The report, The State of Safety for Asian American and Pacific Islander Women in the U.S., will be released on Thursday March 3, 2022. Please email media@napawf.org for embargoed copies of the report or to receive the press release. To download a copy of the survey on March 3, please visit: www.napawf.org. 

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The National Asian Pacific American Women’s Forum (NAPAWF) is the only multi-issue, progressive, community organizing and policy advocacy organization for Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) women and girls in the U.S. NAPAWF’s mission is to build collective power so that all AAPI women and girls can have full agency over our lives, our families, and our communities.