Media Contact:
Krystle Canare
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
May 8, 2024
On May 10, 2024, NAAPIMHA, cities, elected officials, community organizations and businesses are commemorating the fourth annual National Asian American Pacific Islander Mental Health Day, a national day to raise awareness around mental health in Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander (AA & NHPI) communities.
National Asian American Pacific Islander Mental Health Day takes place at the intersection of Asian Pacific American Heritage Month and Mental Health Awareness Month. This provides a unique opportunity to not only raise awareness around our diverse heritages and mental health, it gives us a chance to talk about how the two are directly related. It is important to continue addressing the many mental health challenges facing AA & NHPIs, but NAAPIMHA invites you to also join us in celebrating who we are as this TOO is mental health.
The national resolution stands on the shoulders of mental health advocates at RAMS, Inc. in San Francisco who spearheaded the first statewide proclamation making May 10th Asian and Pacific American Mental Health Day in California in 2010. This year, the bicameral resolution will be introduced yet again in Congress. At the state and local level, AA & NHPI mental health advocates and organizations from 30 states, counties, and cities have submitted proclamation requests. NAAPIMHA will be joined by over 100+ community partner organizations to center and support AA and NHPI mental health in communities nationwide.
According to data collected by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), AA & NHPIs have the lowest help-seeking rate of any racial/ethnic group, with only 36% of the 2.8 million AANHPI adults with a mental illness receiving treatment in 2022 (NSDUH, 2022). And, even though suicide is the tenth leading cause of death in the United States, it is the leading cause of death for AA & NHPI youth ages 10-24 (CDC, 2020). The COVID-19 pandemic has only exacerbated these problems as increased racial violence and discrimination against the Asian American community has increased the need for mental health services.
We believe it’s crucial that we continue to advance conversations around mental health in the AA & NHPI community to improve the quality of care for AA & NHPI communities. From mental health stigma reduction, addressing historical discrimination to current racial violence, data disaggregation, language access, workforce development, culturally competent services, suicide prevention, to supporting existing AA & NHPI community-driven resources and non-dominant ways of healing, we call upon Federal, State, and local health agencies to adopt laws, policies, and guidance to improve help-seeking rates for mental health services and overall community wellness and care for AANHPIs and other communities of color.
For NAAPIMHA, we celebrate this National AANHPI Mental Health Day within the context of today’s current realities, centering the mental health and well-being of young leaders from our communities who are advocating for Palestinian liberation while facing heightened violence and erosion of their civil rights, safety, and freedom of speech. We join our young leaders in advocating for the healing of all those impacted by genocide and continue to update our healing offering guide with the latest support groups, grief circles, and subsidized mental health services.
We acknowledge National AANHPI Mental Health Day will look different for everyone. For other community partners across the country, centering AANHPI mental health is taking the form of free mental health service offerings by AANHPI providers, mental health days for AANHPI community organizations, mental health advocacy, educational events, cultural celebrations, and more. We encourage everyone to take the time and space to honor their mental health and well-being this May 10th and everyday throughout the year.
Join us for National Asian American, Native Hawaiian, Pacific Islander Mental Health Day!
Take the pledge to celebrate, sign-up as a community partner, and invite your friends at: https://www.naapimha.org/aanhpimentalhealthday
National Asian American Pacific Islander Mental Health Day would not be possible without the countless AA & NHPI mental health advocates and community partners listed below:
National Resolution
Mia Ayer, Erika Ninoyu & Nisha Ramachandran, Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus
State and City Proclamations (list in progress)
California - Richmond Area Multi Services, Inc
Colorado - National Asian American Pacific Islander Mental Health Association
Hawaii - Chachie Abara, Filipino Mental Health Initiative of Hawaii
Illinois - Abbey Eusebio, Chinese American Service League
Massachusetts - Pata Suyemoto, National Asian American Pacific Islander Mental Health Association
Oregon - SEIU 503-Asian Desi Pacific Islander (ADPI) Caucus
City of Arcadia - Emily Wu Truong
City of San Francisco - Richmond Area Multi Services, Inc
City of San Marino - Emily Wu Truong
Community Champions
AAPI Amplified
AAPI Data
AAPI Democratic Caucus Nevada
AAPI Montclair
AAPI Youth Rising
ACE NextGen
Act to Change
AMBIV Collective
American Foundation for Suicide Prevention
Amplify
Anise Health
API Initiative
API Middle Tennessee
APIDA Student Involvement at the Office of Multicultural Involvement and Community Advocacy (MICA) at the University of Maryland, College Park
Arizona AANHPI for Health Equity
Arkansas United
Asian & Pacific Islander American Health Forum
Asian Americans for Community Involvement (AACI)
Asian Americans with Disabilities Initiative (AADI)
Asian Counseling Referral Services (ACRS)
Asian Girls Ignite
Asian Mental Health Collective
Asian Mental Health Project
Asian Pacific Institute on Gender-Based Violence (API-GBV)
Asian Youth Act
Association of Asian Pacific Community Health Organizations
Bhutanese Community of Central Ohio
Borrowed Hope Apparel Co
Brokada Filipino Men’s Healing Circle
BUKAS
Can't Stop! Won't Stop! Consulting
Can't Stop! Won't Stop! Education Fund
Center of Excellence for Infant & Early Childhood Mental Health Consultation
Change Matrix
CHI Psychological Services
CO+Hoots Coworking
College of San Mateo
Filipino Family Health Initiative of Hawaii
Filipino Young Leaders Program (FYLPRO)
FilExcellence
GoodRx, Inc
Healing Nature Collective
Indigo Cultural Center
JessSayIt
LEAP (Leadership Education for Asian Pacifics)
LES, Live Every Second
Life Affirming Nectar
Mango Tree Counseling and Consulting
Mental Health America - National
Monsoon Asians & Pacific Islander in Solidarity
National Alliance for Mental Illness
National Asian Pacific American Families Against Substance Abuse
National Federation of Filipino American Associations
National Organization of API Ending Sexual Violence
New Pathways Clinic
OCA - Asian Pacific American Advocates
Office of Wellness and Resilience, Office of the Governor, State of Hawai‘i
OT Bay Area, DisruptOT
Pacific Asian Counseling Services
Richmond Area Multi-Services, Inc. (RAMS)
Sadhana Hindus
Sakura Foundation
Sikh American Legal Defense and Education Fund (SALDEF)
Samoan Club at University of Utah
Samoan Community Development Center
SEIU Virginia 512
Shimmer
South Asian Legal Defense Fund
South Asian Public Health Association (SAPHA)
Sunshine Silver Lining
Sweet Mango Therapy Group, Inc
Taiwanese American Citizenship League
Taulama for Tongans
Tayo
The AAKOMA Project
The Asian American Foundation
The Filipino Press
This Is My Brave, Inc
Thriving Asians
VietLead
Wellness with Andrea Jakucs
Yellow Chair Collective
Community Partners
AAPI Equity Alliance
AAPI New Jersey
ACTNow For Mental Health
American Art Therapy Association
American Muslim Health Professionals
Arkansas Philippine Association
Asian American Professionals Association
Asian American Psychological Association (AAPA)
Asian Americans Advancing Justice - AAJC
Asian Pacific American Medical Student Association
Association for Infant Mental Health in Hawai’i
Center for Law and Social Policy (CLASP)
Conference on Asian Pacific American Leadership (CAPAL)
Cuaresma Counseling
DEALING WITH DAD Film
Empowering Pacific Islander Communities
Inseparable
Japanese American Citizen League (JACL)
Kapwa Health Collective
LEAD Filipino
Los Angeles Kalusugan Collective
Mabuhay, Inc
National Alliance for Filipino Concerns
National Council for Mental Wellbeing
National Council of Asian Pacific Americans
Philippine Nurses Association of America, Inc. (PNAA)
Positively Filipino
Southeast Asian Resource Action Center (SEARAC)
SPAN Parent Advocacy Network
Spike and Crown Studios
Stop AAPI Hate
The Art of Living
The Cambodian Family Community Center
Thriving Twentysomethings
World Mission Society Church of God
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About NAAPIMHA
The National Asian American Pacific Islander Mental Health Association (NAAPIMHA) is a nonprofit organization whose mission is to promote and redefine the mental health and well being of the Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander individuals and communities in the United States through training, programs, policy & advocacy, centering those with lived experience.
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