2024 Year in Review
TAAF reflects on their 2024 achievements, highlighting initiatives in safety, education, and community support for the AANHPI community.
Dear Friends,
As 2024 draws to a close, I want to take this opportunity to thank you for your continued support of our mission. This has been a year of innovation, impact, and growth at TAAF. Just this morning, we released our 2024 Year in Review. I encourage you to visit the site for a look back at this year’s groundbreaking initiatives, highlights, and accomplishments that were only possible through your support and partnership.
As I reflect on this year and our work, I think about the initiatives that were especially meaningful to me. These projects were all tied to our efforts toward promoting safety and belonging for our communities. Through on-the-ground work, research, and education, we can build a better future for AANHPIs.
To address safety at the community level, our Anti-Hate & Safety National Network is now made up of 56 leading organizations in 14 metros covering 50% of the AANHPI community. This outstanding coalition of leaders is on the frontlines of fighting hate and bias every day and we are so grateful for their work.
The findings from our fourth annual STAATUS Index demonstrated just how critical representation and visibility are to the safety and belonging of our community. STAATUS is the only multi-year, nationally representative study of the perspectives of Americans about AANHPIs. Among our findings, we learned that 52% of Americans still can’t name a famous Asian American, and Asian Americans are the least likely group (at 38%) to feel they belong.
To shine a light on the pressing issue of safety in our communities, we released two first-of-their-kind reports that examined the safety concerns affecting AANHPI residents in New York City and Seattle. I believe that the data from the New York City and Seattle Safety Studies will be an invaluable tool for our communities and allies to combat anti-Asian hate, and ensure that our cities are safe and welcoming for all.
There can’t be safety without belonging, and belonging starts with learning. I’m so proud of TAAF’s launch of the AAPI History Hub, an innovative new online educational platform that brings AAPI history into the K-12 classroom. The Hub gives teachers access to high-quality, standards-aligned curricular resources, which will be a critical resource as more states mandate the teaching of AAPI history.
Of course, safety goes beyond physical well-being. We also want to ensure that members of our community feel safe talking about issues of mental health and well-being. It was for this reason that we just launched our latest research study, Beyond the Surface: Understanding Mental Health Among Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander Youth. This is one of the most comprehensive national studies exploring the mental health of AANHPI youth. I hope that it can open up a constructive dialogue about the unique struggles and pressures that affect young AANHPIs, and how we can better support them.
2024 also saw the launch of a project that’s very special to me: Fighting to Belong! A History of Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders, Vol. 1. This is the graphic novel that I wish I had growing up. I’m thrilled that young people of all backgrounds will be able to see that AANHPI history truly is American history. We are so excited for the upcoming May 2025 release of Volume 2 in the series.
We closed the year the way we started it—in community with all of you. Last week, TAAF celebrated the opening of our new San Francisco office. We welcomed 120 community, civic, and corporate leaders and partners including Sarah Ching-Ting Wan, Executive Director of Community Youth Center (CYC), who spoke about the work being done at the community level to support AAPI youth.
From all of us at TAAF, we would like to wish you a joyous holiday season and New Year. We look forward to continuing our work together in 2025.
In solidarity,
Norman Chen
CEO, The Asian American Foundation
