Dear SFHP Members:
It has been a difficult time in our San Francisco community and our country. The conviction of Derek Chauvin brought a brief sense of relief, but we are confronted daily with continuous reminders that the work to end racism and violence in our communities continues. The recent local and national acts of violence against the Asian American Pacific Islander community are shameful and outrageous. Over one third of San Francisco Health Plan members identify as Asian/Pacific Islander and many of you are feeling targeted. Recent killings of unarmed black men by police in Minnesota and North Carolina underscores the need for all of us to feel safe, without fear of being targeted for how we appear, our beliefs, who we love, or our abilities.
The San Francisco Health Plan unequivocally believes all forms of hate and violence directed against people based on their race, ethnicity, gender identity, sexual orientation, disability, religion, age, size, and immigration or housing status threatens the health of our community and our country’s commitment to equal opportunity for all. We are your health plan – combatting these threats to your health is our work.
We have started working with communities to address unequal health outcomes that may exist by race, ethnicity, gender, and gender identity.
We are supporting the work of Stop AAPI Hate, based out of San Francisco State, which has been documenting incidents of violence, harassment, discrimination, shunning, and child bullying against Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders in the United States. It is because of them that we know of 3,800 reported incidents from March 2020 – February 2021. They also have multi-lingual resources, tips and support on their website.
Hollaback! is a global, anti-discrimination organization offering free, online bystander intervention training.
The American Civil Liberties Union has useful information about how to increase your safety during routine traffic stops.
We offer these resources and updates to support you and your loved ones. We will continue to update you on our efforts to improve your health and reduce racial disparities.
Thank you for being a part of our member community – we are all in this together!