Solidarity Statements

March 8, 2023

The VCPA Board as a whole is elevating the import of Equity, Diversity and Inclusion, and part of this initiative includes individual members providing statements of solidarity with our diverse members. Recently one of our newest members to the board, Dr. Maria Sanchez, kicked off this initiative with a solidarity statement regarding International Women's Day and Women's History Month. I am proud of her work and leadership in preventing female genital mutilation in the US and abroad and appreciate the extra effort in providing this solidarity statement with women in the US, across the globe, as well as in our community, both providers and clients alike. Look for future messages of solidarity, messages on the Website, educational opportunities, Special Interest Groups (starting this Friday!), and more in the months ahead. Be well and reach out if you have ideas or wish to participate in the EDI committee, SIG, or other activities.

May 19, 2023

May is Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) Heritage month, as we commemorate the many contributions and culture of at least 45 distinct ethnicities, over 100 dialects, and the multifarious identities of Asian heritage. We acknowledge a history of racial inequity and mistreatment, such as the atrocities towards Japanese Americans in internment camps during World War II, and we stand with our Asian brothers and sisters in the face of unacceptable and ongoing racism and violence. Let us commit to standing up and speaking out against racism and violence, as much as we address the racism inherent in some of our own daily actions and language. It is important to understand the history and ongoing challenges, as much as it is to commemorate achievements and celebrate cultural differences. We acknowledge the many contributions and sacrifices of Asian American and Pacific Island ancestors in the United States, including the many veterans who have served in wartime.

We want to celebrate the many ways Asian culture has enriched our lives: from K-drama films like Strong Girl Bong Soon that make us laugh and K-pop stars like BTS that make us scream, to Ai Weiwei’s ambitious artistic creations, to the writings of Ocean Vuong and Haruki Murakami, to some favorite local food destinations like Rice by Mama and the Island Pacific Seafood Market. There are original documentary films commemorating early Chinese settlers in Ventura County, such as, “Courage and Contribution: The Chinese in Ventura County.” This film notes the first Chinese mayor elected in California history, Oxnard mayor Bill Soo Hoo. We have a county rich in AAPI narratives, and I invite you all to share history and information like this, with the goal of learning more about the varied experiences of individuals from our Asian American and Pacific Island community.

There are some local events to commemorate AAPI folks in our community as well, including the second annual AAPI festival at the Heritage Square in Oxnard (715 S. A Street) Saturday May 27 from 12-5PM. Music, Dancing, Art, and Reenactment will all be part of the festivity. For other events in the Los Angeles Metropolitan area, please visit this website: https://www.dailynews.com/2023/05/05/where-to-celebrate-asian-american-and-pacific-islander-heritage-month-in-los-angeles-county/

The following are special contributions of local resources from Dr. Jill Huang:

Filipino Community of Ventura County
https://www.fcvci.org/

Philippine Center of Ventura County
philcenter.org

Ventura County Chinese American Association
http://www.vccaa.org/

Conejo Chinese Cultural Association
https://ccca-tocs.org/beta/

Ventura County Japanese American Citizens League
https://venturacountyjacl.weebly.com/

Additional Learning Resources
Each Mind Matters
http://www.eachmindmatters.org/mental-health/diverse-communities/api/

Know the Signs - has culturally adapted suicide prevention outreach materials in multiple AAPI languages
http://www.suicideispreventable.org

Asian American Psychological Association (AAPA)
http://aapaonline.org

National Asian American Pacific Islander Mental Health Association (NAAPIMHA)
http://naapimha.org

Bystander intervention training to stop anti-Asian American and xenophobic harassment
https://www.ihollaback.org/bystanderintervention/

Stop Asian American Pacific Islander Hate (reporting)
https://stopaapihate.org/

Resources for AAPI History
Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center
https://smithsonianapa.org/learn/not-a-stereotype/

PBS 150 Years of AAPI History (5-part documentary):
https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/watch-powerful-documentary-asian-american-history-180974864/?utm_source=smithsoniandaily&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=20210318-daily-responsive&spMailingID=44647412&spUserID=ODcyNjc0NjczOTAwS0&spJobID=1961536533&spReportId=MTk2MTUzNjUzMwS2

Maria

March 8 is International Women’s Day. The 2023 campaign theme is #EmbraceEquity. International Women's Day was established in 1911, so anyone anywhere can play a part in helping forge women's equality. International Women's Day is supported by organizations, groups, governments, and individuals worldwide committed to a more gender-equal world.
https://www.internationalwomensday.com/

The month of March is also National Women’s History Month. Women’s History Month is a celebration of women’s contributions to history, culture, and society and has been observed annually in the month of March in the United States since 1987 when Congress declared it in perpetuity. A special Presidential Proclamation is issued every year which honors the extraordinary achievements of American women.

Women’s History Month takes place from March 1 - March 31, 2023.

Below are highlighted TV and streaming offerings that are led by women actors, feature women in history, or touch on themes and subject matter that are of interest to viewers.

Most of the streaming services have organized their women-centric titles into collections. There are documentaries and narrative depictions of historical events, as well as films and shows by, about, and starring women.

Each link below connects you with a multitude of titles, whether it be The Morning Show and Hala on Apple TV+, Ms. Marvel and She-Hulk: Attorney at Law on Disney+, Euphoria and I May Destroy You on HBO Max, Bridgerton and The Woman King on Netflix, Poker Face and She Said on Peacock, Daisy Jones & the Six and The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel on Prime Video, and on and on.

Check out the options available in your current subscriptions and maybe discover some new content you’d like to subscribe to:

Apple
Criterion Channel
Disney+
HBO Max – “Women Who Made History” and “The Scene-Stealers” collections on app
Hulu
Netflix
Ovation
Paramount+
PBS App
Peacock
Prime Video & Freevee
Starz

In Ventura County:

FIRST WOMAN REGISTERS TO VOTE AND HAVE IT COUNTED IN ELECTION

JANUARY 13, 1912

Emma Parnell of Oxnard registered to vote after California granted women suffrage in October 1911. A new register was opened in 1912 and Emma Parnell would be the first to register in the new book and the first to register and have it count in a bond issue or election.

Katherine Hamilton, Ph.D.
Mental Health Awareness Month

Hello Colleagues.

This is a different sort of solidarity statement. It is about solidarity amongst ourselves.

We live and breathe solidarity with those with mental health difficulties.

We are mental health professionals. It is our mission to serve mental health needs. It is our career, our passion, our expertise. It is who we are, and what we do. Whether we are mental health providers, educators, consultants, researchers, managers or supervisors, much of what we think and talk about is inextricably intertwined with mental health awareness. What we don’t often talk about are our own mental health needs and struggles, or the personal experiences that drew us into this profession. This is not something we share with our patients, but many of us come to the profession due to our own experiences growing up, or personally struggling with depression, anxiety, substance abuse, etc. But do we talk with each other about it? We work to de-stigmatize. We work with the public, clients and their families to educate and normalize. But I wonder how much we may have nevertheless insidiously and unknowingly internalized societal and cultural attitudes that create reverberations of shame and embarrassment, and therefore cause us to give short shrift to tending to ourselves while we are so busy tending to the needs of others? What we do is hard. We have a unique occupational vulnerability that we live day to day. There are hazards to our profession. As outlined in “Professional Health and Well-Being for Psychologists” by the APA Board of Professional Affairs’ Advisory Committee on Colleague Assistance in 2008, here are the most common. Yes, these are all things we already know about, but seeing them listed all together really got my attention:

The stress of our role, as professionals working with people in distress The demands and importance of clinical and professional responsibility Varied and often quickly shifting role demands The challenge of managing the intimate, confidential and nonreciprocal nature of the client/therapist relationship Isolation in the work context

Role characteristics that make psychologists prone to burnout (e.g., responsibility for people vs. things, limited control over outcomes, limited resources, high level of involvement) Vulnerability to vicarious traumatization from empathic engagement with traumatized clients The changing standards in the profession (e.g., decreased support for psychotherapy, an increased intrusion of legal and business concerns into therapeutic practice, increased documentation requirements) The stress related to the business of practice (e.g. decreasing revenue and autonomy, managed care demands)The interactions between personal stresses and the demands of our work Utilizing the person of the therapist as a therapeutic tool The heightened risk of suicide among male psychologists “The interaction between personal stresses and the demands of our work” alone is phenomenal in its impact. Just like everyone else, we give birth, raise children, tend to elders; become ill, have accidents, age; experience interpersonal conflict, divorce, lose loved ones; worry about the day to day, experience setbacks, survive traumatic events. For goodness sake, we helped others through a pandemic while experiencing it ourselves! So, my colleagues and friends, as we end this month of mental health awareness and head into the months of summer when we often take it a little easier, let’s all resolve to show up more for ourselves and for each other.

Let’s take inventory of our stressors and shore up our stress reduction strategies.

Let’s reach out and share our humanity with each other, take well-deserved breaks, see our therapists.

Let’s get outside of our heads and out of our offices.

Let’s utilize the resources of our professional organizations to reduce isolation.

Let’s find our flow and cultivate some joy.

Anna
Hello VCPA Members

I wanted to take a moment and recognize September as National Suicide Prevention Month. Although this topic deserves year-round attention and recognition, I think it is important to highlight how mental health advocates, allies, survivors, organizations and mental health professionals alike are using the month to unite, promote suicide prevention awareness, reduce stigmatization of suicide and increase education and access to services.

World Suicide Prevention Day is September 10^th and it is a time to bear witness to those affected by suicide, raise awareness and provide resources.

Per the Suicide Awareness Voices of Education statistics, there is one suicide death in the US every 10.9 minutes (2021). This is an alarming statistic. As mental health professionals, we are supporting in prevention efforts every day and there is still more to be done systemically to reduce suicide.

We stand in solidarity with survivors of suicide, their loved ones, and the impact on communities.

Below you will find some resources that you can share with others.

#BeThe1To

This is the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline’s message for Suicide Prevention Month. A way to raise awareness and increase prevention.

BeThe1To: Ask Be There Keep Them Safe Help Them Stay Connected Follow Up Check out: https://988lifeline.org/promote-national-suicide-prevention-month/