NASW-CA Statement on the Monterey Park Shooting

Over the weekend, numerous individuals and families prepared to celebrate Lunar New Year, a time for shared reflections and blessings for the year ahead. Tragically, however, our communities across the state and the country are now reeling from the deadly shooting in Monterey Park that took 11 lives and injured 10 others. NASW-CA shares the outrage, grief, and utter frustration that yet more lives were senselessly lost by another mass shooting. These events are shattering. The harm and murders that target and impact Asian American communities are terrifying and real. Our thoughts and prayers are with the families and communities of the victims. We encourage and call upon social workers everywhere to step in and support your clients, your communities, your colleagues, and yourselves during this time to allow space for pause and grief. Help us share and elevate the resources available to Asian American and Pacific Islander communities and allies everywhere. Now is the time to offer support and demand change. Explore our list of resources below to find mental health guidance and support.

The Asian Americans Advancing Justice Southern California started a GoFundMe to support the victims of the Monterey Park shooting.

Los Angeles County Local Resources

• Chinatown Service Center: The center, which provides services and advocacy for immigrants and other communities in, is offering trauma counseling to community members.
• Asian Pacific Counseling and Treatment Centers: The mental health center is specifically developed to meet the unique needs of Asian Pacific immigrants and refugees who are in need of a wide range of mental health services.
• Pacific Asian Counseling Services: This resource center provides culturally sensitive and language specific mental health and other services, with expertise in immigrant Asian Pacific Islander populations. Services in Khmer, Korean, Tagalog, and Spanish.
• Asian Pacific Islander Community Outreach Project | Legal Aid Foundation of Los Angeles (LAFLA): Free legal assistance through Asian language hotlines providing advice, direct representation, and referrals.
• Center for the Pacific Asian Family: CPAF provides domestic violence, sexual assault and child abuse services within the Los Angeles Asian Pacific Islander (API) community. A 24-Hour multilingual helpline is available at 1-800-339-3940.

General Resources

• Mass Violence Victimization Resource Center’s Guide
• Mass Violence Victimization Resource Center’s 12 Self-Help Tips for Coping
• Asian Mental Health Collective’s Asian American Therapist Directory
• Asian Mental Health Collective’s AAPI Support Group
• Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration’s Coping with Grief after a Traumatic Event
• Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration’s Addressing Trauma and Mass Violence