Womankind and Allies Secure Historic New York City Funding for Immigrant Survivors of GBV
Womankind and Allies Secure Historic New York City Funding for Immigrant Survivors of Gender-Based Violence (GBV)
Members of The Collective, Council Members, and advocates gathered at City Hall. Photo courtesy of The Collective.
For years, community-based organizations like Womankind have quietly filled the gaps where city systems fall short, offering immigrant survivors of gender-based violence a safe place to be heard, believed, and supported in the languages they speak. Now, for the first time in the New York City Council’s history, that work is receiving the formal investment it has long deserved.
The New York City Council has allocated $3 million to launch the Culturally Specific Gender-Based Violence Initiative, a first-of-its-kind funding stream for nonprofit organizations that serve survivors in immigrant and BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, and People of Color) communities. Womankind played a key role in advocating for the initiative as part of The Collective, a coalition of trusted, culturally grounded service providers that includes SAKHI for South Asian Women, the Korean American Family Service Center (KAFSC), Sauti Yetu Center for African Women and Families, and the Violence Intervention Program (VIP).
Womankind CEO Yasmeen Hamza at the steps of City Hall celebrating the initative. Photo courtesy of The Collective.
“This $3 million investment provides critical funding for gender-based violence organizations like ours to offer trusted and culturally responsive assistance to the 2,600+ survivors and families on their healing journey, and to support communities across New York City in rising above violence,” said Yasmeen Hamza, CEO of Womankind. “We’re deeply grateful for the leadership that made this possible.”
The initiative was championed by Councilmembers Sandra Ung, Linda Lee, Shekar Krishnan, and Susan Zhuang, with strong support from Speaker Adrienne Adams. Together, they recognized that traditional gender-based violence services—though well-resourced—often fail to reach immigrant survivors due to language barriers, cultural stigma, and a lack of representation. This new funding is a direct response to those gaps and builds on the impact of the NYC Council’s Domestic Violence and Empowerment (DoVE) Initiatie, ensuring that culturally specific organizations can expand legal assistance, provide multilingual counseling and interpretation, and offer advocacy and referrals that feels familiar, not foreign.
At Womankind, where services are offered in over 18 Asian languages and dialects, the investment affirms what the organization has long known to be true: safety begins with trust, and trust begins with cultural understanding. Survivors shouldn’t have to explain who they are to be believed. They should be met with support that already understands them.
This historic investment is not just about funding, but about transforming how the city responds to gender-based violence. By centering the voices and needs of immigrant communities, New York is signaling a deeper commitment to inclusive, culturally responsive care. For survivors across the five boroughs, it’s a powerful message: your story matters, and support is finally reaching you in the language you understand.
