Mainstream narratives continue to represent Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians, and Pacific Islanders (AAs and NHPIs) as an aggregate population with a monolithic experience of prosperity. We know that AA and NHPI communities have a wide range of lived experiences, and many of them continue to struggle, especially in light of the many challenges exacerbated by the pandemic. To ensure we have data that reflects the lived experiences of our communities and challenges pervasive harmful narratives, National CAPACD worked with Emiko Kranz at the UCLA Asian American Studies Center to update the data we have available on AAs and NHPIs experiencing poverty in the United States, based on the Census 2021 American Community Survey (ACS) data.
We urge policymakers, funders, and other decisionmakers to refer to this data when considering the needs of AA and NHPI communities. And we hope that this data underscores the importance of data disaggregation – it is only when we disaggregate data that we can accurately capture the diverse experiences of AA and NHPI communities.
