The Asian American Federation of New York launched a Tsunami Local Response Initiative two weeks ago to reach Asian-Americans living in the city who may have been affected by the Dec. 26 tsunami in the Indian Ocean.
A new toll-free help line at 800-356-4892 is now available to receive and provide information from Asian-Americans in New York City who have been touched directly or through family and friends by the disaster. The resource is also available to anyone who was in the area when the tsunami struck or who went there to assist with relief efforts.
A federation team of outreach workers will gather and release information in communities with ties to Indonesia, Sri Lanka, South India and Thailand, according to Cao K. O, executive director of the federation. The effort will include a report to be issued with the New York Regional Association of Grantmakers on the effect of the tsunami on the city’s Asian-American communities including an assessment of needs and recommendations to remedy service gaps.
The federation, established in 1990, is a not-for-profit group that works with 35 member agencies to strengthen services and conduct research and advocacy in the Asian-American community.
