DISABILITY PRIDE MONTH

Check out these book recommendations to commemorate Disability Pride Month this month! The newest version of the flag is designed to improve visibility for color blindness and to reduce the chance of triggering seizures, migraines and nausea. The five colors on the flag represent different types of experiences including physical (red), neurodivergence (gold), invisible (white), psychiatric (blue), and sensory (green).

988 MENTAL HEALTH CRISIS & SUICIDE PREVENTION LINE

In an effort to improve access to mental health crisis services, the 988 dialing code was launched nationally on July 16th. Calls and texts to this code will be directed to the existing National Suicide Prevention Lifeline (Lifeline), where anyone experiencing mental health distress including thoughts of suicide, mental health or substance use crisis or any other kind of emotional distress may access support. People can also dial 988 if they are worried about a loved one who may need crisis support.

The National Asian American Pacific Islander Mental Health Association (NAAPIMHA) has developed a factsheet and released a blog article with more information about this initiative. 

SOUTH ASIANS FOR ABORTION

SAPHA is joining South Asian SOAR to launch South Asians For Abortion, a digital platform for storytelling, mobilizing resources, and advocacy, to ensure reproductive justice, bodily autonomy, and abortion access, for everyone.

On the platform, you can:

• Find abortion access and rights resources, conversation guides, analysis and articles
• Share and read powerful stories by South Asians about abortion, reproductive control, loss, and more
• Donate to mobilize resources for South Asian survivors and organizations to ensure access to reproductive and sexual health care
• Share your voice through opinion pieces, art, and more!

With this platform, we want to honor the decades-long reproductive justice movement led by BIPOC and LGBTQIA+ communities while ensuring that South Asians rise up to mobilize, show up in solidarity, and break the silence and stigma around abortion and reproductive justice in our communities.

Artwork: Anjali Chandrashekar

RESEARCH & NEWS HIGHLIGHTS

SAPHA is proud to endorse the South Asian Heart Health Research and Awareness Act that would raise awareness on the alarming rate of heart disease in the South Asian community and work to reverse the trend. This bipartisan legislation from Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-WA) passed the US House of Representatives this week.

The MASALA Study, launched in 2010, focuses on factors that lead to increased cardiovascular disease risks among South Asians. JAMA recently interviewed Dr. Alka Kanaya and Dr. Namratha Kandula about this study - check out their interview here. 

A new study in Diabetes shows that South Asians in Atlanta saw a significant improvement in diabetes and hypertension through culturally-tailored interventions led by community health workers. Read more here.

SAPHA wants to hear about the experiences of organizations supporting Covid-19 efforts within the South Asian community in the US: COVID-19 Grant Survey

SAVE THE DATE!

Will you be attending the APHA Annual Meeting and Expo this year in Boston? We would love to meet you at SAPHA's Chai & Chat event. More details to follow!