ARP Support for Survivors Program Grant Partner Announcement – May 2023
RAKSHA, INC JOINS OVER 40 COMMUNITY ORGANIZATIONS SERVING SEXUAL ASSAULT AND DOMESTIC VIOLENCE SURVIVORS IN $13.2 MILLION AMERICAN RESCUE PLAN INITIATIVE
ARP Support for Survivors Program supports culturally-specific, community-based projects supporting survivors of domestic violence and sexual assault from Asian and Pacific Islander Communities in the United States and the Pacific.
ATLANTA, GA – Today, Raksha, Inc will be joining over 40 organizations, both nationally and locally, in an effort to provide culturally-specific, community-based support for survivors of domestic violence and sexual assault from Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) communities across the U.S. and Pacific. The $13.2 million dollar initiative from the Family Violence Prevention and Services Act (FVPSA) under the 2021 American Rescue Plan (ARP) will be will be the first time API-GBV will be distributing two years of funding to culturally specific organizations that serve sexual assault (SA) and domestic violence (DV) survivors in AAPI communities.
Under the ARP Support for Survivors Program, subgrants will be distributed through the
Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault Capacity Building Fund to assist organizations like Raksha, Inc by providing DV and SA services in Asian/Asian American, Native Hawaiian, Pacific Islander (AANHPI), and Middle Eastern (ME) communities in the United States and U.S. territories.
The ARP Support for Survivors Program will address the emergent needs of survivors, and the programs that serve them, resulting from the COVID-19 public health emergency. The work will also promote strategic partnership development and collaboration in responding to the COVID-19 public health emergency on survivors of Sexual Assault and Domestic Violence.
“API-GBV is honored and proud to welcome organizations like Raksha, Inc who are at the forefront of sexual assault and dometic violence work amid the COVID-19 pandemic. It is essential to have this kind of funding distributed to communities with organizations deeply rooted in their environmental and cultural awareness and expertise in supporting survivors,” said Monica Khant, Executive Director of API-GBV. “The AAPI community is often left out of the public narrative on sexual assault and domestic violence and through this important work we will have the opportunity to support organizations who directly support survivors in our communities.”
The organization was selected by a committee of peer reviewers with extensive experience in the domestic violence and sexual assault fields, and working in AANHPI and ME communities in the U.S. Funding provided under the ARP Support for Survivors grant will advance Raksha, Inc’s strategic goals/plans for the year.
Raksha, Inc is among 15 organizations serving Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander communities and 14 organizations serving Middle Eastern communities, including projects focused on prevention, culturally specific services for Queer and Trans survivors, virtual services and data security, culturally rooted practices in healing and resiliency, and engaging men and youth. For a complete list of grantees, visit this link.
###
About Raksha, Inc
Raksha, meaning protection in several South Asian languages, is a Georgia-based nonprofit whose mission is to promote a stronger and healthier South Asian community through confidential support services, education, and advocacy. Raksha works toward healing, empowerment, and justice for South Asian survivors of violence. Founded in 1995, Raksha is the first organization focused on serving South Asian survivors in the southeastern United States. Raksha has grown in both breadth and depth and currently provides multilingual, culturally appropriate mental health counseling and advocacy in more than 9 languages for more than 500 victims and survivors a year.
Website: www.raksha.org
Linktree page: https://linktr.ee/Rakshainc
Facebook, Instagram, Twitter: @rakshainc