The Asian American Foundation and Asian Americans Advancing Justice – AAJC Announce New Partnership to Strengthen Community Safety

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Sofia Costas scostas@advancingjustice-aajc.org

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, The Asian American Foundation (TAAF) and Asian Americans Advancing Justice – AAJC (Advancing Justice – AAJC) announced a new partnership to bolster the capacity of nearly 50 organizations in TAAF’s Safety National Network, a coalition of leading national, regional, and local groups responding to anti-Asian hate, violence, discrimination, and profiling.

Through a grant from TAAF, Advancing Justice – AAJC will provide organizations in the network with training and technical assistance to strengthen their ability to respond to hate incidents and emerging threats. Drawing on Advancing Justice – AAJC’s civil rights expertise, the collaboration will also ensure TAAF’s partners have the resources needed to navigate long-term challenges as historic patterns of anti-Asian prejudice and scapegoating continue to impact Asian American communities.

“As we mark five years since the creation of TAAF’s Safety National Network, we remain committed to investing in the frontline organizations that are providing direct services and critical resources to communities across the country,” said Norman Chen, CEO of TAAF. “The alarming rise in anti-Asian rhetoric and incidents in recent months, paired with the findings of TAAF’s State of AAPIs research on the safety of Asian Americans in key cities, underscore the need to bring new resources and support to our partners on the ground.”

“Community organizations are at the frontlines when it comes to helping people who experience hate or discrimination, and they need the tools and support to respond effectively,” said John C. Yang, President and Executive Director at Asian Americans Advancing Justice – AAJC. “This partnership with TAAF will help us strengthen the capacity of trusted organizations across the country to better respond in the immediate aftermath of an incident and build the knowledge and infrastructure necessary to protect our communities for the long term.”

As part of the partnership, Advancing Justice – AAJC will provide organizations in TAAF’s Safety National Network with:

• Practical guidance for local organizations responding immediately after an incident of hate, violence, profiling, or discrimination;
• Tailored trainings on how organizations can connect community members to appropriate support;
• Updates and analysis on anti-Asian hate trends, emerging risks, and federal policy developments; and
• One-on-one support for incident response, community education, communications, civil rights concerns, and referrals.

TAAF launched the Safety National Network in 2021 to deploy emergency relief to victims of anti-Asian hate incidents at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, and to improve incident tracking, protection, response, and prevention measures. Since 2023, members of the network have served over 100,000 community members across 14 metropolitan areas. 

But while public focus on anti-Asian hate incidents has faded since the pandemic, Asian American communities continue to face hate and discrimination, fueled not only by anti-Asian bias but also by escalating anti-immigrant and targeted anti-South Asian rhetoric. According to TAAF’s 2026 STAATUS Index, over 1 in 5 Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders reported being insulted or harassed because of their race in the past year. And per Advancing Justice – AAJC’s recent analysis of the FBI's Hate Crime Statistics, anti-Asian hate crimes in 2025 remained elevated more than 2 ½ times more than before the pandemic.

More information about TAAF’s Safety National Network is available at taaf.org. Additional resources from Advancing Justice – AAJC can be found at advancingjustice-aajc.org. 

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