Submitted by CCCL_EDI
Contra Costa County Library’s Equity, Diversity, and Inclusivity (EDI) Committee stands with our Asian American family and against hate and aggression towards anyone in our public libraries, in our communities.
Six months ago, in October 2020, we wrote to you from this very space, introducing you to the library’s EDI committee, our purpose and goals. Then, as now, our love and support is for all people. We didn’t think we’d need to remind anyone that Black Lives Matter. We are now here to state that we stand with Asian American Pacific Islanders and condemn aggression, hate, and racism directed towards our Asian friends and family. Our families might hail from India, from China, from the Philippines, from Hawaii: we are all American.
We stand with our partners in the Asian Pacific American Librarians Association (APALA), who come together “to create an organization that would address the needs of Asian Pacific American librarians and those who serve Asian Pacific American communities.”
We echo their sentiment:
“We will continue to simultaneously call out anti-Blackness in our communities and offer our support to our Black colleagues, while recognizing the intersectional nature of white supremacist culture and oppression.”
We stand with Contra Costa County and share Resolution No. 2021/114 Condemning Xenophobia and Hate Crimes Against Asian American Pacific Islander (AAPI) Communities, affirming our “commitment to the safety and well-being of citizens, non-citizens and visitors with ancestry from the Asia Pacific region and in combating racist acts targeting AAPIs.”
We are all in this together. We cannot overstate this simple fact. We are one community, regardless of age, ethnicity, class, gender, physical abilities/qualities, race, sexual orientation, religious status, gender expression, educational background, geographical location, income, marital status, parental status, and work experiences.
Contra Costa County libraries welcome everyone to our public libraries.
RESOURCES
Anti-Racism, Mental Health, Safety
Asian Pacific American Librarians Association (APALA)
APALA is a nonprofit organization dedicated to enhancing leadership opportunities through informed dialogue that addresses the needs of Asian/Pacific American librarians and those who serve APA communities.
2021 COVID-19 Anti-Xenophobia and Anti-Racist Information Resources
COVID-19 Anti-Asian Racism Resources for K-12
Stop AAPI Hate
In response to the alarming escalation in xenophobia and bigotry resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic, the Asian Pacific Planning and Policy Council (A3PCON), Chinese for Affirmative Action (CAA), and the Asian American Studies Department of San Francisco State University launched the Stop AAPI Hate reporting center on March 19, 2020. The center tracks and responds to incidents of hate, violence, harassment, discrimination, shunning, and child bullying against Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders in the United States.
Safety Tips for Those Experiencing or Witnessing Hate
Young, Proud, and Sung-Jee, by Joyce Y. Lee and Emily Ku
The purpose of this book is to provide a resource to help generate meaningful discussions between adults and children about anti-Asian racism. An incident involving anti-Asian racism is directly introduced in the story of this book.
The book is available now free to download.
Asian Americans Advancing Justice
A national affiliation of five leading organizations advocating for the civil and human rights of Asian Americans and other underserved communities to promote a fair and equitable society for all. Click to read stories documenting hate and educating about the environment of hate around the country.
GLBTQ+ Asian Pacific Alliance (GAPA)
We envision a powerful queer and transgender Asian and Pacific-islander (QTAPI) community that is seen, heard and celebrated. Our mission is to unite our families and allies to build a community through advocacy, inclusion and love.
What You Can Do to Fight Violence and Racism Against Asian Americans
Asian American community leaders shared advice with the PBS NewsHour about ways Americans can help.
BIPOC Mental Health Resources
The Mental Health Coalition is dedicated to addressing the mental health needs of the BIPOC community, and we know that society’s work is far from over in creating culturally informed, quality mental health equity for all.
Mental Health Resources for the BIPOC Community
Contra Costa County Employee Assistance Program (EAP)
The County’ EAP is available not only to all County employees, but also to anyone living with a County employee.
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