The William and Flora Hewlett Foundation has announced twenty-two grants totaling $5.5 million in support of nonprofit organizations serving Asian, Asian-American, and Pacific Islander communities.

Grants will support groups working in a wide range of fields, including direct service in the areas of health and domestic violence, advocacy on issues such as immigration and civil rights, and support for the broader field through data, journalism, and capacity building. Almost all the grant recipients are based in California, primarily in the Bay Area, though efforts range from local service to national policy.

Recipients include the AAPI Civic Engagement Fund, which supports grassroots AAPI groups working to build power and leadership; the Asian American Journalists Association, which aims to boost the visibility and inclusion of AAPI journalists in newsroom leadership, as well as toward equitable and accurate coverage of AAPI individuals and issues; the Asian Law Alliance, which provides essential services to low-income residents; Bulosan Center for Filipino Studies, which advances research, education, and advocacy on issues faced by Filipinos; and the National Asian Pacific American Women’s Forum, which is the only multi-issue, progressive, community organizing and policy advocacy organization for AAPI women and girls in the United States.

“Asians, Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians, Pacific Islanders — we are collectively a vital part of this country’s past, present, and future. Particularly in the Bay Area, where there is such a rich diversity of cultural communities, people of Asian descent are found everywhere: providing essential services like food, education, and health care, leading in the arts and creative industries, building tomorrow’s technology, organizing social movements, and more,” said Adam Fong, co-chair of the advisory council that selected the grantees and a program officer in the foundation’s Bay Area-focused performing arts program. “We are so proud to support groups that are serving these communities in a time when the need has increased so dramatically.”

(Photo credit: Xinhua/Li Jianguo/Getty Images)