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Family is Still Family: Public Service Announcements

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Chinese PSAsIn the Asian and Pacific Islander (API) community, young people often see coming out as an act of shaming and dishonoring their parents and their ancestors, but staying in the closet takes a greater toll, causing isolation, depression, and even suicide.

Our “Family Is Still Family” television PSA Campaign—the first-ever multi-lingual public service announcements created especially for API parents—offers a powerful message: offer your LGBTQ child a lifeline, support their coming out, and keep the family strong and unified.

These groundbreaking ads feature parents, some of whom are foreign-born immigrants with limited English proficiency, who declare acceptance and unconditional love for their LGBTQ children.

Last year, the “Family Is Still Family” PSAs, produced in association with the Asian Pride Project, aired on local Asian ethnic television stations during LGBTQ Pride Month in markets across the U.S., including Boston, Chicago, Hawaii, Los Angeles, and Sacramento.

South Asian PSAs

Multilingual Videos

NQAPIA worked with the Asian Pride Project to develop a series of short, multilingual videos of AAPI parents who love their LGBTQ children. You can find all of the videos on YouTube.com/nqapia.

Chinese
Mandarin with English subtitles – Deanna Cheng, a Chinese mother of a gay son
Cantonese with English subtitles – Rosetta Lai, a Chinese mother of a lesbian daughter

South Asian
Hindi with English subtitles – Kamlesh and Harcharan Bagga, Indian parents of a gay son
English with Hindi subtitles – Vinay Chaudhry, an Indian father of a genderqueer child

Korean
Korean with English subtitles – Clara Yoon, a Korean mother of a transgender son

Japanese
English with Japanese subtitles – Marsha and Tad Aizumi, Japanese parents of a transgender son

Southeast Asian
Vietnamese with English subtitles – Ha Nguyen, a Vietnamese mother of a gay son
English with Lao subtitles – Phanida Phivilay, a Lao mother of a lesbian daughter

Filipino
English with Tagalog subtitles – Carol Mannion, a Filipina mother of a gay son

Family is Still Family - Filipino

None of the parents are actors. They are all everyday parents from different parts of the country.

Learn more about NQAPIA’s Family Acceptance Campaign

Download the leaflets

Attend the workshops

Support our Federation Members this Give OUT Day

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Especially in 2017, we need to support the safety of our queer and trans and gender non-conforming Asian American, South Asian, Southeast Asian, and Pacific Islander (API) community. Learn how our federation members are supporting our communities with funds raised in this year’s Give OUT Day.

 

It’s critical it is to come together, fight isolation, and build systems that support our full humanity, so this spring, APIENC’s Give OUT Day focuses on supporting their summer leadership development work: internship, leadership exchange, and network of community mentorship. Every dollar supports the leadership development of trans, non-binary, and queer APIs.

API Equality-LA works within the Asian and Pacific Islander and LGBTQ+ communities in order to promote racial and social justice. All funds raised will sustain their internship and leadership programs for the upcoming year. Their programs give youth from different backgrounds and identities hands-on training with community organizing and activism.

Nearly a year since the Orlando nightclub shooting, NQAPIA and the Muslim Alliance for Sexual and Gender Diversity (MASGD) continue to support, empower, and connect LGBTQ Muslims across the country.

 

MASGDMASGD aims to increase acceptance of gender and sexual diversity within Muslim communities and promotes a progressive understanding of Islam that is centered on inclusion, justice, and equality. They seek to challenge root causes of oppression, including misogyny and xenophobia. Your gift allows MASGD to continue creating opportunities for LGBTQ Muslims to be represented, find resources, and know they are not alone.

NQAPIA recognizes the importance of building family acceptance and cultivating supportive communities for LGBTQ Asians and Pacific Islanders. Our groundbreaking family acceptance workshops and multi-lingual visibility campaign have helped make heartwarming progress.

 

To lift our communities, NQAPIA is supporting efforts to plan the first-ever National LGBTQ Conference for Korean Americans. This landmark project will bring together LGBTQ people of Korean descent from around the country to help build a shared sense of identity and pride and to promote broader acceptance and visibility within the API community.

The San Gabriel Valley Asian Pacific Islander PFLAG is a loving community of compassionate and welcoming individuals that provide a safe space for parents, families, straight allies and LGBTQ persons of Asian, Pacific-Islander, East Asian, and South Asian descent. Funds raised will help continue their monthly support group meetings and community outreach programs.

Will you make a donation of $25 to one organization or even $5 to each organization?
With any amount, we all appreciate your support on Give OUT Day and every day.

#NQAPIA   www.giveoutday.org   #GiveOUTDay

2016 Voter Guide

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Click the links below for PDF copies and translations of this voter guide:

NQAPIA 2016 Presidential Voter Guide ~ Chinese ~ Hindi ~ Korean ~ Vietnamese

nqapia-voter-guide-pg1-reminders

Click the links below for PDF copies and translations of this voter guide:

NQAPIA 2016 Presidential Voter Guide ~ Chinese ~ Hindi ~ Korean ~ Vietnamese

nqapia-voter-guide-checklist

Click the links below for PDF copies and translations of this voter guide:

NQAPIA 2016 Presidential Voter Guide ~ Chinese ~ Hindi ~ Korean ~ Vietnamese

nqapia-voter-guide-details

nqapia-voter-guide-pg4-facts-disclaimers

Click the links below for PDF copies and translations of this voter guide:

NQAPIA 2016 Presidential Voter Guide ~ Chinese ~ Hindi ~ Korean ~ Vietnamese

Parents of LGBTQ Korean Americans Launch Effort to Build Acceptance in Korean Immigrant Communities

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Korean American Rainbow Parents (KARP) will kick off its outreach program in New York City with a film screening and community discussion, to be followed by a day-long seminar in Washington, D.C., for parents, activists, and allies from across the U.S. and Korea.

KARP Dol Screening

NEW YORK CITY, September 5, 2016 – Today, Korean American Rainbow Parents (KARP) announced the start of a national program of outreach and education for family members and allies of LGBTQ Korean Americans.

The initiative starts in New York City, with a film screening and community discussion on September 11, 2016, co-hosted by The Least of These Church in downtown Manhattan, the only LGBTQ-affirming Korean church in the Greater New York area. LGBTQ Korean Americans will share their stories and experiences of living with LGBTQ identities while being part of a community often known to be homophobic and transphobic. The event will also feature a screening of “Dol (First Birthday),” a short film by a Korean American director, Andrew Ahn, who made the film as a way of coming out to his parents as gay.

KARP’s outreach and education series will continue with a national seminar in Washington, D.C., on October 15, 2016, which is expected to bring dozens of Korean American parents and allies from across the country and from South Korea together for the first time. This watershed event will be the first chance for parents from across the country to build community with one another and start a conversation around how to support their LGBTQ family members’ struggle for rights and acceptance. Professor Namsoon Kang from Brite Divinity School will give a keynote address on acceptance of LGBTQ people in Christian communities.

The goal of KARP’s initiative is to provide Korean American families, especially those with LGBTQ-identifying members, with tools and strategies to see beyond their initial feelings of guilt, shame, and fear – and to instead celebrate their loved ones and help make the world safer and more accepting for them.

The need for KARP’s national effort is tremendous: Even within the broader Asian American and Pacific Islander community, LGBTQ Korean Americans face some of the strongest homophobic and transphobic pushback from their families and friends. Many cultural and historical forces drive Korean anti-LGBTQ sentiment. This has torn families apart, forced many Korean Americans to leave the community as they came out. And so far, there have been no known efforts by Korean American parents and allies to visibly support the LGBTQ community.

KARP – a coalition of accepting parents who openly support their LGBTQ kids – aims to change that. With the continued struggles of LGBTQ people in both South Korea and the U.S., it’s a crucial time for closeted parents and family members to come out in full solidarity with their LGBTQ loved ones.

Members of the media interested in learning more and/or attending both the New York City and Washington, D.C. events may contact Clara Yoon at karp.lgbtq@gmail.com. Interviews with Korean American parents and their LGBTQ loved ones may also be arranged by request.

NEW YORK CITY EVENT:
September 11, 2016
4-6 PM
The Least of These Church (Judson Memorial Church, Garden Room) , New York, NY 10012

WASHINGTON D.C. ALL-DAY SEMINAR:
October 15, 2016
Holy Cross Korean Episcopal Church
Fairfax, Virginia

These events are being sponsored or supported by following Korean American LGBTQ and Ally organizations:
Nabi USA – Washington DC (Butterfly for Hope Fund)
Coalition of Korean American (National and DC Chapter)
D.C. Korean Methodist Church
Holy Cross Korean Episcopal Church, Fairfax, Virginia
AAPI LGBTQ Parent Support Group of Greater Washington DC
API Rainbow Parents of PFLAG New York City (ARP PFLAG NYC)
The Least of These Church, New York, NY
Dari Project
National Queer Asian and Pacific Islander Alliance (NQAPIA)*

*NQAPIA is our fiscal sponsor.

CONTACT:

Clara Yoon – Korean American Rainbow Parents
Email: karp.lgbtq@gmail.com
Phone Number: 917.716.6705

Read PDF versions of the KARP Press Release in English or KARP Press Release in Korean.

韓裔同志社區組織與盟友們共同譴責鄭勝振之恐懼非異性戀者的言論

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: August 31, 2016
Media Contact: Mark Ro Beyersdorf, dariproject@gmail.com, (347) 669-2584
Organizational representatives are available for interviews

韓裔同志社區組織與盟友們共同譴責鄭勝振之恐懼非異性戀者的言論

針對州參議員參選人與韓裔社區領袖鄭勝振於8月29日刊登於紐約每日日報歧視非異性戀者的（同性戀者、雙性戀者、跨性別者、性別認同疑惑者, 英文簡稱LGBTQ)言論，韓裔同志社區組織、韓裔盟友們、以及亞太裔同志社區組織的共同聲明如下：

「鄭勝振對非異性戀族群的守舊看法，對於充滿各色各樣、非異性戀移民族群色彩的皇后區而言是落伍的。
身為韓裔非異性戀組織與其同盟，看見一位對韓裔社區有如此重大貢獻的人物發表對於非異性戀社群、婚姻以及公共教育的偏歧言論，我們深感失望。其從教科書中刪去非異性戀者存在的有害訴求，抹煞了尋求同為非異性戀者和韓裔身份認同的我們和我們家人的存在一樣。

當一個社區領袖，如鄭勝振，發表歧視同志以及跨性別（恐同、恐跨）的言論時，這無疑地將重創社區裡正在掙扎著出櫃的年輕人。身為一位社區領袖，鄭勝振有道德責任為這些年輕非異性戀族群發聲，而不是擴大守舊的偏見。

我們呼籲鄭先生徹底反省其言辭中的有害影響，重新評估他的立場，並與簽署此聲明的組織會面。」

此聲明及通信僅提供教育用途使用，並無黨派立場。不可作為支持或反對任何參選人或其辦公室的資料。

簽署者:

  • API Rainbow Parents of PFLAG NYC (ARP PFLAG NYC)
  • Asian Pride Project
  • Dari Project
  • Gay Asian and Pacific Islander Men of New York (GAPIMNY)
  • Korean Americans for Political Advancement (KAPA)
  • Korean American Rainbow Parents (KARP)
  • National Queer Asian and Pacific Islander Alliance (NQAPIA)
  • Q-WAVE

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[연대성명] 정승진 후보의 성소수자 차별 발언을 규탄한다

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: August 31, 2016
Media Contact: Mark Ro Beyersdorf, dariproject@gmail.com, (347) 669-2584
Organizational representatives are available for interviews

[연대성명] 정승진 후보의 성소수자 차별 발언을 규탄한다

지난 8월 29일 뉴욕 데일리 뉴스는 뉴욕 주 상원의원 후보이자 한인사회 리더인 정승진 후보의 반동성애적 발언에 대해 보도했다. 이에 한국계 성소수자 단체들, 이들을 지지하는 한인들, 그리고 아시안계 성소수자 단체들은 다음과 같이 성명을 발표한다:

“성소수자에 대해 정승진 후보가 보이는 시대착오적 시각은 성소수자인 이민자들이 활발한 공동체를 이루고 살아가는 퀸즈라는 공간의 특징을 완전히 거스르고 있다. 그간 한인 사회에 크게 기여해온 정치인이 성소수자 커뮤니티, 결혼 제도, 그리고 공교육에 관하여 이토록 편협한 입장을 드러냈다는 데, 우리 성소수자 한인과 지지자들은 참담한 심정을 금할 길 없다. 교과서에서 성소수자의 존재를 삭제해야 한다는 그의 주장은 몹시 위험하다. 성소수자이자 한인으로서 일상을 살아가는 당사자들과 이들의 가족이 지금 여기 퀸즈에 존재한다는 사실을 부정하는 것이기 때문이다.

정승진 후보와 같은 지역 사회의 정치인이 동성애 혐오와 트랜스젠더 혐오를 보이면 이는 해당 지역 사회에서 자신의 성소수자 정체성을 어떻게 드러내면 좋을지 고민하는 청소년과 청년들에게 무척 해롭다. 미국 전역에서도 다양한 문화가 공존하는 지역으로 손꼽히는 퀸즈의 정치인으로서, 정 후보는 구시대적 편견을 버리고 청소년 및 청년 성소수자들을 대변해야 할 도덕적 책무가 있다.

우리는 정 후보가 자신의 발언이 얼마나 유해한지 깊이 성찰하고, 본인이 기존에 견지해 온 성소수자 차별적 입장을 재검토하기를 요청한다. 나아가 본 성명서에 연대 서명한 단체들과 만나 대화하기를 권고한다.”

해당 문건과 관련 소통은 교육적 목적만을 지니며 철저히 비당파적이고 초정파적이다.
특정 공직 후보를 지지하거나 반대할 목적으로 작성된 문건이 아님을 밝혀둔다.

한국계 성소수자와 지지 단체의 연대 성명 명단:

  • PFLAG NYC 아시아-태평양 무지개 부모모임 (ARP PFLAG NYC)
  • 아시안 프라이드 프로젝트
  • 다리 프로젝트
  • 뉴욕 아시아-태평양 게이 남성모임 (GAPIMNY)
  • 한인 정치 발전회 (KAPA)
  • 한국계 미국인 무지개 부모모임 (KARP)
  • 미주 아시아-태평양 퀴어 연대 (NQAPIA)
  • Q-WAVE

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LGBTQ Korean American Groups and Allies Condemn S.J. Jung’s Remarks on LGBTQ Communities

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: August 31, 2016
Media Contact: Mark Ro Beyersdorf, dariproject@gmail.com, (347) 669-2584
Organizational representatives are available for interviews

LGBTQ Korean American Groups and Allies Condemn S.J. Jung’s Remarks on LGBTQ Communities

Following the New York Daily News’ report of homophobic remarks made by S.J. Jung, a candidate for the New York State Senate and Korean American community leader, LGBTQ Korean American organizations, joined by allied Korean American and LGBTQ Asian American & Pacific Islander organizations, have issued the following statement:

“S.J. Jung’s backwards remarks about LGBTQ people are out of sync with a place as diverse as Queens, which has a vibrant LGBTQ immigrant community. As LGBTQ Korean Americans, their family members and their allies, we are deeply disappointed to see a man who has done such important work in Korean American communities express such bigotry around LGBTQ communities, marriage and public education. His harmful wish to literally erase LGBTQ people from school text books ignores the existence of people like us and our families, who live every day at the intersection of LGBTQ and Korean identities.

“When community leaders like Jung make homophobic and transphobic remarks, it is absolutely devastating to young people in their communities who are struggling to come out. As a community leader, Jung has a moral responsibility to be a voice for these LGBTQ young people–not a megaphone for outdated bigotry.

“We urge Jung to think long and hard about the damaging impact of his words, reevaluate the positions he has taken, and meet with the organizations that have signed onto this statement.”

Organizations that have signed this statement are listed below:

  • Dari Project
  • Korean Americans United for Equality (KUE)
  • Korean American Rainbow Parents (KARP)
  • Korean Americans for Political Advancement (KAPA)
  • Asian Pacific Islander Rainbow Parents of PFLAG NYC
  • National Queer Asian American and Pacific Islander Alliance (NQAPIA)
  • Gay Asian and Pacific Islander Men of New York (GAPIMNY)
  • Q-WAVE
  • Asian Pride Project

This statement and correspondence is for educational purposes only and is strictly nonpartisan. It should in no way be construed to oppose or support any candidate for elected office.

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QAPIs 4 Black Lives: Show your Solidarity

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We, as LGBTQ AAPIs, cannot continue to watch Black lives being taken away. We need to show our support through actions, and more than ever, now is the time to have hard conversations about solidarity in our communities.

Sign the Pledge for Justice

Join the Movement for Black Lives by taking the pledge for solidarity. Although the #BlackLivesMatter movement has grown, so has the violence against it. We must continue to show courage and spread love despite so much unjust, state violence.

We are the Movement for Black Lives

What is our Place in the Movement?

In our QAPIs4BlackLives video, members of the NQAPIA family share painful personal experiences to describe how the QAPI community has been marginalized by police. Watch, listen, and learn why it is necessary to support #BlackLivesMatter.

QAPIs4BlackLives

Click the image to watch NQAPIA’s QAPIs4BlackLives video

Continue the Conversation with your Family

Letters for Black Lives

Within many of our families, #BlackLivesMatter is not a topic we discuss. After the deaths of Philando Castile and Alton Sterling, the AAPI community crowdsourced An Open Letter to our Parents about BLM.

This letter is a conversation starter to a greater discussion. Not only is this letter in English, but it is also in multiple languages with alternate versions still being created to make this document as accessible as possible.

Read some of the Asian versions including Arabic, Bahasa (Indonesian and Malaysian), Bengali, Chinese (simplified and traditional), Farsi, Hindi, Hmong (white and green dialect), Japanese, Khmer, Korean, Tagalog, Tamil, Telugu, Thai, Urdu, and Vietnamese.

Share your Support

Sign the pledge. Watch the video. Read the letter.

#BlackLivesMatter  #APIs4BlackLives  #M4BLPledge  #AAPICall4Solidarity

가족이라는것도, 사랑한다는것도변하지않습니다.

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Korean Leaflet

가족이라는것도, 사랑한다는것도변하지않습니다.

사랑하는가족중에동성애자, 양성애자또는트랜스젠더(LGBT)가있는부모와가족은많습니다. 사랑하는가족이 ‘커밍아웃’을했을때,그가족들에게궁금한점이생기는건자연스러운일입니다. 이러한궁금증을풀어나가기위한실마리로몇가지중요한사실들을알려드리려합니다.

  • 사람은누구를사랑할지또는어떻게사랑할지선택하지않습니다.

LGBT의정체성을가지게된것은선택한것도, 어떤원인이있는것도아닙니다. 미국으로건너와살게되어서도아니고, 대도시에서살아서도아니고, LGBT 친구들이있어서도아닙니다. 실제로 UCLA 법학대학원의윌리엄스연구소에따르면, 미국에있는아시아태평양계인구중 325,000명, 즉 2.8%가 LGBT 정체성을가지고있다고합니다.어떻게성적지향과성별정체성이결정되는지는아무도정확히알지못하지만, LGBT 사람들대부분은어릴때부터자신이다르다는사실을인지하게됩니다.

  • 부모도, 그들의 LGBT 자녀도잘못한게없습니다.

죄책감과수치심은많은 LGBT의부모들이초기에공통적으로느끼는감정이지만, 부모때문에자녀가 LGBT가된것은아닙니다. 사람을LGBT로 ‘만드는’ 환경적요인으로확인된것은없습니다. LGBT라는것은그저그사람자체의특성일뿐입니다. 연구에따르면, 가족이이사실을받아들여줄경우건강과행복을촉진하게된다고합니다. 가족의사랑과지지는약물남용, 건강위험요소및자살과같은위험하고자기파괴적인행동을줄여줍니다.

  • LGBT 사람들은행복하고성공적인삶을삽니다.

많은 LGBT 사람들이충만하고건강한삶을살수있습니다. 미국을포함한전세계가빠르게변해가고있습니다. 보다많은주와나라에서동성결혼을인정하고있습니다. 윌리엄스연구소에따르면동성관계에있는 33,000명의 AAPI(아시아태평양계미국인) 중 26%가자녀를양육하고있다고합니다. 그뿐만아니라, LGBT 개인들은성공적인커리어를누리고있습니다. 여러비즈니스, 기업, 기관및비영리기관에서 LGBT 직원들을공개적으로지지하고있습니다.

  • 점점더많은전통적신앙들이‘진화’하고있으며, LGBT 사람들을환영하고있습니다.

LGBT 사람들을환영하며변화를보이고있는신앙과종교가점점더많아지고있습니다. 일부경전의구절들은특정시대의사고방식과문화에맞게기술된것일뿐입니다. 이제여러신앙들은LGBT를포옹하는것이곧연민, 사랑, 자비로운하느님, ‘다른사람에게대우받고싶은대로다른사람을대우해야한다’는믿음과같은강력한종교적/영적가치를중시하는것임을깨닫고있습니다.

  • 모두에게더나은세상을만들어갑시다.

많은주와지방의시민권법이 LGBT 사람들을보호하고있습니다. 그러나아직도차이를가지고있는사람들에대한차별가능성은남아있습니다. 인종, 민족, 종교, 출생지, 이민신분, 성적지향또는성별정체성에관계없이공정함과안전, 타인에대한존중이가득한세상을만드는것은우리모두의책임입니다.

  • 스스로공부하고, 다른사람에게도가르쳐주세요.

당신을위한지원과자원이준비되어있습니다. PFLAG(사랑하는 LGBT 가족을 지지하는 가족과친구들), National Queer Asian Pacific Islander Alliance(NQAPIA) 및 Asian Pride Project와 같은 단체를통해귀하와 가족을 위한 자원을 이용하실 수 있습니다. 자세한내용은www.pflag.org, www.nqapia.org, www.asianprideproject.org에서확인하실수있습니다.

당신은혼자가아닙니다.

 

Download the Korean leaflet PDF.

Watch the Korean PSA video.

Korean Parents who Love their LGBT Kids – PSAs

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Korean Parents who Love their LGBT Kids – PSAs

This month of June, tune into your local Asian Television station and see Korean parents who love their transgender children.

Korean with English subtitles – Clara Yoon, a Korean mother of a transgender son

NQAPIA and the Asian Pride Project collaborated to develop a series of multilingual public service announcements (PSA)—short, beautiful videos of Asian American, South Asian, and Southeast Asian parents who love their lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) children.

Throughout the LGBT Pride Month, we are also releasing videos featuring other Asian, South Asian, and Southeast Asian parents of gay men, lesbian daughters, and genderqueer kids. Our goals are to diversify the faces of parents who have LGBT kids and to promote understanding and acceptance.

 

Translated “Family is Still Family, Love is Still Love”

Multilingual Leaflets in 19 Asian languages

NQAPIA and parents developed a series of one-page, translated leaflets for parents who have LGBT kids. The multilingual leaflets answer basic questions about being LGBT and dispel common misperceptions. They are in nineteen (19) Asian languages and scripts—the largest number of languages ever translated from a single LGBT document.

Korean leaflet (click to view and download)

We hope the videos and written materials will be helpful resources for young people (and really anyone) who aim to come out to their parents.