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2022 ANNUAL REPORT

A WORD FROM OUR ACTING EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

SEARAC’s commitment to family and community care means that I have once again stepped into the role of Acting Executive Director. Our Executive Director, Quyên Đinh, is taking time off for parental leave, so I am thrilled and grateful to be leading SEARAC until mid-2023. Having returned from my own sabbatical in early 2022, I know how important rest, recovery, and time with family can be. Generous time off and paid family leave are some of the many ways that SEARAC is putting our values of community care into practice.

This past year brought monumental changes and historic victories for SEARAC and for Southeast Asian Americans. Our introduction of the Southeast Asian Deportation Relief Act was especially memorable for me for two reasons: first, I joined SEARAC eight years ago in the role of Immigration Policy Manager, and during my time in that role, I witnessed first-hand the devastation that punitive immigration policies cause immigrant and refugee families. I never would have imagined that almost a decade later, we would be standing in front of the US Capitol to introduce the first ever Southeast Asian-centered anti-deportation bill. And our event with the Southeast Asian Freedom Network to introduce this powerful legislation was the first time since COVID that I saw our partners in-person and reconnected with many of the families I met and worked alongside with years ago. It was a very emotional day as I reflected on how far SEARAC has come, how our community has grown, how those directly impacted continue to lead the work, and how our collective power has led to real change.

As we look ahead to 2023, I'm excited to continue this theme of connecting with our staff, partners, and community members, as our Leadership and Advocacy Training program will return to an in-person event in Washington, DC, this summer. We’ve also grown to the largest staff in SEARAC history, many of whom have yet to meet in person; I look forward to connecting with our board and meeting with our team members as we continue to advocate for Southeast Asian Americans’ right to heal, right to be seen, and right to family.

I last served as SEARAC’s Acting Executive Director in 2020, a time marked by a global pandemic, political insurrection, civil unrest, and countless attacks — physical, emotional, and political — on our communities. Despite these challenges, SEARAC has grown in size, impact, and power. I am proud to be serving an organization that models how nonprofits can not only survive but thrive in times of crisis. Thank you for joining us in our mission.

KATRINA DIZON MARIATEGUE, Acting Executive Director, SEARAC

Katrina with her husband and daughter at Shenandoah National Park in 2022

ABOUT SEARAC

SEARAC was founded in 1979 as the “Indochina Refugee Action Center” due to concern about the genocide in Cambodia and large number of refugees fleeing Southeast Asia. After the war and bombings of Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia claimed millions of lives between 1955 and 1975, our founders advocated for the passage of the 1980 Refugee Resettlement Act, which created our nation’s first comprehensive and unified system of refugee resettlement and support.

Today, SEARAC is a national civil rights organization that builds power with diverse communities from Cambodia, Laos, and Vietnam to create a socially just and equitable society. As representatives of the largest refugee community ever resettled in the United States, SEARAC stands together with other refugee communities, communities of color, and social justice movements in pursuit of social equity.

MAJOR AREAS OF FOCUS

Aging with Dignity

COVID-19 Relief and Recovery

Cultural Competency

Data Equity

Education Access

Physical and Mental Healthcare

Immigrant Justice

STRATEGIES

Building powerful community leaders and advocates

Community engagement and mobilization

National and state policy advocacy

Internal infrastructure building

RETURN TO IN-PERSON PROGRAMMING

After nearly three years of holding exclusively virtual convenings and meetings, SEARAC was thrilled to return to in-person programming with a California partner convening in November 2022. SEARAC staff and CA community partners serving Southeast Asian American and Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander communities gathered at Crissy Field Center in San Francisco to reflect and connect on challenges, community needs, and areas for greater collaboration. The convening deepened community-building and strengthened our collective advocacy strategy with local partners.

OUR COMMUNITIES

For SEARAC, Southeast Asian American is a political identity that comes from the shared experience of people who came to this country as refugees from the US occupation of Cambodia, Laos, and Vietnam. Southeast Asian Americans now number nearly three million, and most arrived in the United States as refugees, are the children of refugees, were sponsored by refugee families, or arrived as immigrants.

Southeast Asian Americans include people from dozens of diverse ethnic and language groups, including but not limited to:

2022 BY THE NUMBERS

35+ community members trained during our Digital Advocacy Training

120+ organizations signing on in support of the Southeast Asian Deportation Relief Act

70+ Congressional and CA legislative meetings

2,000 Hmong, Lao, and other Laotians' family members reunited by lifting the immigration and travel bans on Laos

40+ articles in national and local media uplifting Southeast Asian American narratives

ADVOCACY HIGHLIGHTS

Key national legislation that SEARAC supported in 2022:

  • Black Maternal Momnibus Act: Directs federal agencies to improve maternal health, particularly among racial and ethnic minorities and other vulnerable populations.
  • COVID-19 Language Access Act: Requires federal agencies to translate written English materials into multiple languages, including Hmong, Khmer, Laotian, and Vietnamese.
  • Debt-Free College Act: Covers the unmet financial needs of students through multiple funding pathways and allows certain undocumented students access to federal financial aid.
  • Dignity for Detained Immigrants Act: Overhauls the immigration detention system by ending mandatory detention, phasing out private detention facilities, and increasing federal oversight of remaining detention facilities.
  • New Way Forward Act: Restores due process protections back to the immigration system by ending mandatory detention, limiting crimes that make someone removable, creating a statute of limitation, and restoring judicial discretion back to immigration judges.
  • Southeast Asian Deportation Relief Act: Limits Southeast Asian deportations and provides further protections for the more than 15,000 Southeast Asian refugees who face deportation and are subject to ongoing trauma.
  • Teaching Asian Pacific American History Act: Requires colleges, libraries, museums, and other institutions to teach Asian Pacific American history as part of civics and US history.

KEY CA STATE LEGISLATION THAT SEARAC SUPPORTED IN 2022:

AB = Assembly Bill, SB = Senate Bill

  • AB 937 (VISION Act): Protects community members who have been deemed eligible for release from being transferred by jail/prison systems to immigration detention.
  • SB 1161 / AB 2448 / AB 2549 (No Place for Hate): Addresses and conducts research on hate and harassment, including in businesses and on public transportation.
  • AB 2697 (Health Workforce): Adds Community Health Workers and Promotoras as a Medi-Cal benefit and increases culturally and linguistically appropriate health outreach and education.
  • SB 1019 (Mental Health Access): Requires consistent outreach and education to inform Medi-Cal members of their right to mental health services.
  • Asian-Language Teacher Accreditation: Invests $5 million in the 2022-23 CA State Budget for Asian-language bilingual teacher education programs in California and for improving education access for Asian language speaking students.

CALIFORNIA HISTORIC WINS

In 2022, planning and implementation began for two historic legislative victories in California:

  • AB 1726 (AHEAD Act), passed in 2016, requires the California Department of Public Health (CDPH) to collect and report additional Asian, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander demographic data for major health indicators. CDPH has begun data collection and published the API Data Disaggregation Brief. Meanwhile, SEARAC met with local county health departments to better understand the progress and challenges of data collection across levels of the state public health system, and is preparing a findings brief with recommendations for continued AB 1726 implementation.
  • SB 895 (Model Curricula), passed in 2018, requires the California Department of Education to develop a model curriculum incorporating Cambodian, Hmong, and Vietnamese American culture and history. Implementation of this policy was made possible by the passing of AB 167, which funds current curriculum projects across counties in California. SEARAC is supporting the Orange County Department of Education and local partners with stakeholder and community engagement in developing curricula and resources.

IMMIGRATION

Lifting Laos immigration ban

In a major victory for Southeast Asian American communities, in early 2022, the Biden Administration decreased its visa sanctions on Laos, ending a years-long immigration ban instituted during former President Trump’s term in office. Following this groundbreaking win, community members like Moua Vang and his wife Dokmai were able to reunite in the United States to build the lives and families together that they deserve. After their marriage in Laos in 2018, the United States Embassy refused to process Dokmai’s visa because of the sanctions, and she was not allowed to enter the United States. Mai Neng Moua, lawyer for Moua and Dokmai, shared that the couple was “ecstatic” upon hearing the news that the visa sanctions had been lifted. “It has been a very long and difficult journey, and they can't wait to be reunited to start their life together in the United States.”

Introducing Southeast Asian deportation relief

In September, we connected with the Southeast Asian Freedom Network (SEAFN) and Southeast Asian organizations from across the country to celebrate the Southeast Asian Deportation Relief Act, introduced by US Rep. Alan Lowenthal, D-CA, 47. This historic federal bill would limit Southeast Asian deportations and provide further protections for the more than 15,000 Southeast Asian refugees who face deportation and are subject to ongoing trauma. The act:

  • Limits DHS’ authority to deport Southeast Asian refugees from Cambodia, Laos, and Vietnam who arrived in the United States by 2008;
  • Permanently authorizes employment eligibility for Southeast Asians with a final order of removal with a five-year renewal period; and
  • Ends in-person ICE check-ins and establishes five-year intervals between virtual check-ins for Southeast Asians on order of supervision.

During the bill introduction, impacted community members emphasized the urgency of ending the United States’ detention and deportation policies to prevent others from enduring the injustice of double punishment.

HEALTH

Celebrating our right to heal

In October, SEARAC joined advocacy and health services partners in California to host a virtual education and civic engagement event focused on centering community mental health. Our “Right to Heal” event brought together individuals, community organizations, and elected officials from across the state – both virtually and in-person – to learn more about the mental health needs of diverse communities in California. In addition to the Right to Heal event, SEARAC, the California Pan-Ethnic Health Network (CPEHN), The Cambodian Family, and other partners released a report that shared recommendations for meeting community mental health needs. SEARAC, CPEHN, and other statewide organizations collaborated with local partners to host listening sessions in Del Norte, Humboldt, Orange, Sacramento, San Bernardino, and San Diego counties. These listening sessions came in a variety of formats — including focus groups, multi-day conferences, and educational seminars — and they were hosted in both virtual and in-person settings.

Key themes that emerged from the focus groups are highlighted in the report, including:

  • Mental health stigma is pervasive
  • Services are difficult to access
  • Mental health services lack cultural relevance
  • Services are not useful or helpful
  • These disparities have grave health impacts on BIPOC communities
“As refugees and children of refugees, Southeast Asian Americans have unique mental health concerns that must be acknowledged and addressed,” stated Mandy Diêc, SEARAC Deputy Director of California. “We are proud to work with our partners across the state of California to bring our diverse communities together in pursuit of solutions that improve mental health access. This new report offers insights into our communities’ histories, identities, and experiences that will allow policymakers and providers to better meet our needs.”

EDUCATION

Defending diversity in higher education

SEARAC joined our civil rights and education partners Asian Americans Advancing Justice, The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, African American Policy Forum, and Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights in October for a rally at the Supreme Court in support of affirmative action. We denounced efforts to end these programs as well as the shameful stunt of using Asian students as props to dismantle civil rights.

Census data reveal that 68.5% of Cambodian Americans, 66.5% of Laotian Americans, 63.2% of Hmong Americans, and 51.1% of Vietnamese Americans have not attended college. Southeast Asian American students critically benefit from race-based, holistic admission policies.

At the rally, Quyên Đinh, Executive Director of SEARAC, shared her personal story and uplifted SEARAC’s support for race-conscious admissions policies: “I, like many of you and Americans across the country, benefited from admissions policies that saw me as more than a number. Just based on my SATs and GPA alone, I would never have been accepted to the school of my dreams: UC Berkeley. I am part of the lucky few, blessed to be continuing my parents’ and community’s fight for freedom as the first in my family to graduate with a college degree. Today, in front of the Supreme Court, we are standing up and fighting for an America that defends diversity in college admissions so that my story is the norm.“

LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT

Training the DAT 43 to tell their stories and make change

Our annual Leadership and Advocacy Training program was once again held virtually this year, and we were excited to invite 43 rising leaders to join us for a week of digital programming around the Southeast Asian American experience, identity, and advocacy. At the end of the week, virtual meetings were held with the staff of eight Congressional offices, where we told our stories and advocated for policies that would improve Southeast Asian Americans’ right to heal, right to be seen, and right to family.

Mai, a participant from Wisconsin, shared after the event: “I had a really wonderful experience in DAT! Even though we were virtual, I felt strong shared connections with my fellow participants. Some of the stories and experiences shared by the group were so relatable, even from participants who were from other SEAA backgrounds and identities. The experience gave me an opportunity to do something outside of my comfort zone and helped me to find my voice.”

WORKFORCE AND COMMUNITY CARE

Creating a culture of care

SEARAC continues to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic and the growing challenges facing our world today by supporting our staff on multiple levels. In addition to our new four-day, 32-hour workweek, SEARAC also now offers wellness and professional development funds to staff; generous paid time off; 100% employer-funded healthcare coverage for staff and dependents; and a 6% retirement match for staff. Additionally, SEARAC underwent a salary benchmarking process that brought all of our staff salaries to above average market rates.

As our Executive Director, Quyên Đinh, wrote in her blog post about implementing these powerful changes, “Our policies are not about self-care that puts the onus of care on the individual. Our policies put the onus on community care: on making organizational decisions that allow for everyone to be able to take care of each other and themselves. As an organization whose top mission is to care for its community, and to champion policies for the community’s right to heal, we apply those same values to the team members who work everyday to make that mission—a dream of an equitable future—a reality.”

“I donate to SEARAC because your work gives me hope. Focusing on adversity without focusing on hope is a self-fulfilling prophecy – we’re not breaking the cycle. My son needs to know his history, but he also needs to know something more than despair. I want a renaissance for the Southeast Asian American communities, who came to the US with hopes and dreams – in spite of everything.” – Nicholas Muy, 2012 LAT alum and SEARAC donor
“It is appalling that a government can create refugees by bringing conflict to their country, offer them a chance to start a new life, and then deport them years later ... I was so thankful to discover SEARAC and have the chance to support your work.” – Elizabeth Elmore, SEARAC donor
“I am motivated by SEARAC's work to create a socially just and equitable society, in particular, the need to do more to protect access to affordable quality health care coverage and to call for the disaggregation of Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander community data to equip communities and policymakers with accurate and targeted data-driven intervention.” – Anthony Nguyen, SEARAC Board Member

STAFF

  • Quyên Đinh, Executive Director
  • Mandy Diêc, California Deputy Director
  • Tuân ĐinhJanelle, Director of Field
  • Thuy Do, California Program Manager
  • Danny Doan, Field Manager
  • Jazmin Garrett, Field Associate
  • Phun H, Communications Associate
  • Katrina Dizon Mariategue, Chief Operating Officer
  • Jenna McDavid, Director of Development
  • Kham S. Moua, National Deputy Director
  • Nary Rath, California Program Manager
  • Phoebe Tran, Operations and Finance Manager
  • Natalie Truong, Education Policy Manager
  • Elaine Sanchez Wilson, Senior Director of Communications

Interns

  • Diane Chao
  • Alexis Friedman
  • Janessa Thao
  • Kylie Volavongsa

Board

  • Roseryn Bhudsabourg
  • Kathy Duong
  • Sophia Giddens
  • Vân Huynh, Vice Chair
  • Julie Mao
  • Mike Hoa Nguyen
  • Anthony Tan Nguyen, Treasurer
  • Huong Nguyen-Yap
  • Ana Phakin
  • Hieu Pham
  • Seng So, Secretary
  • Phal Sok
  • Monica Thammarath
  • Michael Samnang Tith
  • Lue Vang
  • Chanda Womack
  • Kabo Yang, Chair

Cover art by Chantala Kommanivanh

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