Empowering New York’s Asian American Community Since 1989

Hidden in Plain Sight: Asian Poverty in New York City (2018)

This report quantifies what our member agencies are facing on the ground citywide, a rapidly growing population of poor Asian New Yorkers. This report will focus on New York City, but will also include a glance at upstate regions of New York State, which has seen an growing population of Asian residents. Our report will also cover the unique needs of Asian poor including language and cultural barriers, educational deficits, and lack of access to services. It is our firm belief that only culturally competent social services provided by agencies with deep roots and built-up trust in the community can best serve the Asian poor.

The report will utilize data from the Census Bureau’s American Community Survey (ACS). We will examine poverty from the dimensions of age, race, immigration, language abilities, educational levels, job opportunities, family types, health insurance coverage, geography and Asian ethnicity. The report will briefly touch on the alternative poverty measures generated by New York City Mayor’s Office for Economic Opportunity and discuss the implications of these measures.

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