Dear AAPI Business & Community Leaders, 

On Monday, April 13, the White House Initiative on Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders (AAPI), the White House Office of Public Liaison, and the U.S. Department of Justice hosted a call with stakeholders to discuss efforts to combat anti-Asian hate crimes. As noted in an  Op-Ed from Assistant Attorney General (AAG) for Civil Rights Eric Dreiband last week, Attorney General (AG) William Barr and AAG Dreiband have instructed department prosecutors to have zero tolerance for anti-Asian hate crimes during this pandemic.  As AAG Dreiband stated in the Op-Ed, “The Justice Department is committed to prosecuting hate crimes and violations of anti-discrimination laws against Asian Americans and Asians to the fullest extent of the law”. This reflects AG Barr’s and the Department’s commitment to make all hate crimes prosecutions a priority, in support of President Trump’s call to protect our Asian American community. 

We would like to highlight the following information provided on the call, which includes ways that AAPI businesses and community leaders can help:

  • Statistics show most hate crimes are not reported to law enforcement.
  • As community leaders, DOJ encourages the reporting of hate violence to both:
    • local police and first responders (first and foremost) and
    • FBI.  Here is a directory of all local field offices and telephone numbers for filing complaints: >https://www.fbi.gov/contact-us/field-offices<. DOJ is working to ensure language capacity to receive complaints in a variety of Asian languages.
  • Also, the Department of Justice Community Relations Service (CRS) provides facilitation, mediation, training, and consultation services to community groups working to reduce community tensions and conflicts and supports community efforts to prevent and respond to hate crimes and bias incidents, including COVID-related incidents perpetrated against the AAPI community. 
    • CRS staff are all currently teleworking and available for virtual sessions and consultation about hate crimes prevention and response in these and any other cities across the US.  To reach your local CRS conciliator, send an email toaskCRS@usdoj.gov or call 202-305-2935.  In addition, you can read about CRS’s services and programs on their website at >www.justice.gov/crs<

The White House Initiative on AAPIs continues to stand in strong support of the Asian American and Pacific Islander communities, and along with the White House Office of Public Liaison, we will continue to work with the AAPI business and community leaders.  We will soon share announcements for our Asian Pacific American Heritage Month events – please stay tuned.  Below, you can find updated federal resources as they relate to COVID-19.  Also provided below are links to U.S. Department of Health and Human Services resources for COVID-19 translated into several Asian languages.  Please do forward or share the links with your stakeholders and communities.  

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President Trump continued his unprecedented level of access to the American people at a press conference Thursday evening where he presented his guidelines on the three phases of Opening Up America Again. President Trump remains a tireless fighter for the American people and will continue to take decisive actions to keep our Nation healthy and prosperous. For more information on the guidelines, please go to www.WhiteHouse.gov/OpeningAmerica and see this fact sheet.

The President also celebrated the vital role truck drivers play in keeping America well-stocked at a White House event with Secretary of Transportation, Elaine L. Chao.  Here are their remarks.

“To every trucker listening over the radio or behind the wheel, I know I speak for the 330 million plus Americans

that we say ‘thank God for truckers.’” – President Donald J. Trump

Additionally, this morning President Trump convened two bipartisan dialogues with Members of the Opening Up America Again Congressional Group to discuss the next chapter of the COVID-19 recovery. 

Assistance for American Workers and Families

 For more information and updates, visit Treasury.gov/CARES and SBA.gov/funding-programs.

How to Help – If you or your organization are interested in helping the effort to combat the spread of COVID-19, FEMA has established a website (www.fema.gov/coronavirus/how-to-help) with more information. Examples for the private sector include:

o This solicitation requires registration with the System for Award Management (SAM) in order to be considered for award, pursuant to applicable regulations and guidelines.  Registration information can be found at www.sam.gov. Registration must be “ACTIVE” at the time of award.

  • If you have medical supplies or equipment to donate, please provide us details on what you are offering.
  • If you or someone you know represent a hospital or healthcare provider in need of medical supplies, please contact your state, local, tribal or territory department of public health and/or emergency management agency.
  • If you are interested in doing business with FEMA and supporting the response to COVID- 19 with your company’s non-medical goods and/or services, please submit your inquiry to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Procurement Action Innovative Response Team (PAIR) team at DHSIndustryLiaison@hq.dhs.gov.
  • If you would like to meet with a federal agency regarding a vaccine, diagnostic, therapeutic or other medical device that you are developing for SARS-CoV-2 or COVID-19, please go to medicalcountermeasures.gov.
  • For all other issues and concerns not related to offering products, services, or donations, please email nbeoc@max.gov.

For additional information please visit FEMA’s website: https://www.fema.gov/coronavirus/.

30 Days to Slow the Spread

President Trump announced updated guidelines to continue slowing the spread of Coronavirus in America. This 30-day window will be crucial: If every American does his or her part, the latest model suggests we could save 1 million or more U.S. lives. Please click here for more information: 30 Days to Slow the Spread

If you are a healthcare worker and would like to volunteer to assist in New York City, please find more information here.

HHS resources for Covid-19 translated into Asian languages:

CDC Resources Consolidated in Websites:

1. Chinese: https://chinese.cdc.gov  

2. Korean: https://korean.cdc.gov  

3. Vietnamese: https://vietnamese.cdc.gov   

Precautions for Older Adults:

1. Chinese: https://chinese.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/need-extra-precautions/older-adults.html

2. Korean: https://korean.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/need-extra-precautions/older-adults.html

3. Vietnamese: https://vietnamese.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/need-extra-precautions/older-adults.html

In Retirement Communities or Assisted Living Facilities:

1. Chinese: https://chinese.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/community/retirement/faq.html

2. Korean: https://korean.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/community/retirement/faq.html

3. Vietnamese: https://vietnamese.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/community/retirement/faq.html

Notice of free language assistance services hotline (1-800-232-4636) and online race, color, national origin, or age discrimination complaints:

1. Chinese: https://www.cdc.gov/other/language-assistance.html#Chinese

2. Korean: https://www.cdc.gov/other/language-assistance.html#Korean

3. Vietnamese: https://www.cdc.gov/other/language-assistance.html#Vietnamese

4. Japanese: https://www.cdc.gov/other/language-assistance.html#Japanese  

5. Farsi: https://www.cdc.gov/other/language-assistance.html#Farsi 

6. Arabic: https://www.cdc.gov/other/language-assistance.html#Arabic

7. Tagalog: https://www.cdc.gov/other/language-assistance.html#Tagalog

White House COVID-19 Updates

  • President Donald J. Trump Is Beginning the Next Phase In Our Fight Against Coronavirus: Guidelines for Opening Up America Again (HERE)
  • President Donald J. Trump Convenes Members of Congress to Serve on the Opening Up America Again Congressional Group (HERE)
  • Remarks by President Trump Celebrating America’s Truckers (REMARKS, VIDEO)
  • President Donald J. Trump Announces Guidelines for Opening Up America Again (HERE)
  • President Trump and Members of the Coronavirus Task Force Hold a Press Briefing (VIDEO)
  • Readout of First Lady Melania Trump’s Call with Ms. Carrie Symonds of the United Kingdom (HERE)
  • Daily 1600 – President Trump’s Guidelines for Opening Up America Again! (HERE)

U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven T. Mnuchin’s Joint IMFC and Development Committee Statement (HERE)

  • The IMF and World Bank Spring Meetings provide an important opportunity to hold discussions on the acute challenges that the COVID-19 pandemic poses to the global economy. With global growth now projected to contract by close to three percent this year, it is critical that we all do our part to respond to the immediate health crisis and lay the groundwork to restore growth. 

HHS Announces Ventilator Contract with GE Under Defense Production Act (HERE)

  • This week, the Department of Health and Human Services announced a new contract for ventilator production rated under the Defense Production Act (DPA), to General Electric (GE), in partnership with Ford. GE's contract, at a total contract price of $336 million, is for 50,000 ventilators to be produced by July 13.

OCR Resolves Civil Rights Complaint Against Pennsylvania After it Revises its Pandemic Health Care Triaging Policies to Protect Against Disability Discrimination (HERE)

  • Today, the Office for Civil Rights (OCR) at the U.S Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) is announcing that it has resolved a complaint filed against the Pennsylvania Department of Health (PDH) after PDH revised its Interim Pennsylvania Crisis Standards of Care for Pandemic Guidelines to ensure that persons will not be discriminated against based on disability if providers in the state were to begin triaging life-saving health care services. This is the second enforcement action OCR has taken since OCR issued a Bulletin reminding covered entities of the continued applicability of civil rights laws during the COVID-19 public health emergency.

Coronavirus Update: FDA Encourages Recovered Patients to Donate Plasma for Development of Blood-Related Therapies (HERE)

  • As part of the all-of-America approach to fighting the COVID-19 pandemic, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has been working with partners across the U.S. government, academia and industry to expedite the development and availability of critical medical products to treat this novel virus. Today, we are providing an update on one potential treatment called convalescent plasma and encouraging those who have recovered from COVID-19 to donate plasma to help others fight this disease.

U.S. Department of Labor Issues Alert to Help Keep Manufacturing Workers Safe During Coronavirus Pandemic (HERE)

  • The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has issued an alert listing safety tips employers can follow to help protect manufacturing workers from exposure to coronavirus.

COVID-19 Energy Sector Response Efforts and Frequently Asked Questions (HERE)

  • The U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Office of Cybersecurity, Energy Security, and Emergency Response (CESER) has been closely monitoring the 2019 Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) since January 31. This FAQ was last updated on April 16 2020. 

Federal Reserve Announces its Paycheck Protection Program Liquidity Facility Is Fully Operational and Available to Provide Liquidity to Eligible Financial Institutions (HERE)

  • The Federal Reserve on Thursday announced that its Paycheck Protection Program Liquidity Facility is fully operational and available to provide liquidity to eligible financial institutions, which will help support small businesses.

Department of State Briefing: Updates on Health Impact and Assistance for American Citizens Abroad (HERE)

  • This is the ninth briefing on the State Department’s unprecedented effort to bring Americans home during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The United States is Continuing to Lead the Humanitarian and Health Assistance Response to COVID-19 (HERE)

  • The U.S. Government is leading the world’s humanitarian and health response to the COVID-19 pandemic even while we battle the virus at home.  As part of this comprehensive and generous response from the American people, the U.S. Department of State and the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) have now committed nearly $508 million in emergency health, humanitarian, and economic assistance on top of the funding we already provide to multilateral and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) that are helping communities around the world deal with the pandemic.

Release of U.S. Government Action Plan to Support the International Response to COVID-19 (HERE)

  • In collaboration with U.S. departments and agencies, the Department of State is releasing the U.S. Government Action Plan to Support the International Response to COVID-19. 

Special Leave Accrual for Service Members (HERE)

  • Today, Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness Matthew Donovan signed a department-wide authorization for service members to accrue and retain an additional leave balance of up to 120 days. The department's actions to stem the spread of COVID-19 has significantly limited the ability of service members to take leave during this national emergency, and we know that leave is vital to the health and welfare of our force.

For the most up-to-date information, please see the CDC’s website: www.coronavirus.gov.

 

The White House Initiative on Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders