Asian Pacific American Heritage Month |
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May is Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month. Annually, we recognize and pay tribute to the generations of Asian Americans and Pacific Islander Americans who, through their contributions and influences, have enriched America’s history and culture. On May 7, 1843, the first Japanese immigrant arrived in the U.S., 14-year-old fisherman named Manjiro, by way of whaling ship. May 10th marks the anniversary of the completion of the transcontinental railroad in 1869 by over 20,000 Asian immigrants. Hence, in 1978, President Jimmy Carter signed into law, a resolution proclaiming that a week in May that includes the 7th and 10th days of the month as Asian/Pacific Heritage week. By 1992, the month of May was officially designated as Asian Pacific Heritage Month. |
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Office of Equity & City Updates |
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The Justice Fund in Action |
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The Long Beach Justice Fund (Justice Fund) is one of the Office of Equity's core programs, providing legal representation for low-income immigrants who live or work in Long Beach and are facing deportation. While many people in the deportation process have valid legal reasons to stay in the United States, they cannot argue their cases well enough without legal help. The Justice Fund uses a "universal representation" model, the fundamental belief that everyone deserves due process under the law, regardless of their background or criminal history.
This month, we are sharing the story of one of the Justice Fund recipients, Sithy, a Cambodian refugee and an immigration advocate, fighting to stop his deportation.
In the early 2000s, Sithy was sentenced to serve two life sentences, a minimum of 40 years in prison. He dedicated himself to helping others during that time, and he participated in every rehabilitative and educational program available. Sithy's sentence was reduced, as he was granted parole in 2020 and then transferred to ICE custody. Due to COVID-19 impacts in the detention facility, Sithy was released, reuniting with his family after 15 years, and he is now taking action in his own immigration case. The Long Beach Justice Fund provides community members like Sithy with full-scale removal defense to protect the basic right of due process.
Read more on Sithy's story here.
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Smart Cities Initiative Annual Report |
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The launch of the Smart City Initiative in 2019 established guiding principles and pathways to using technology and data to improve the lives of all Long Beach residents. The Smart City Initiative is built upon principles of equity, inclusion, resilience, innovation, and community collaboration.
Find out what our City has been up to explore, implement, and create new technology to make our City better. From augmented reality, to smart traffic signals, to data privacy protections; we’re working hard to make sure technology works for you!
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Every month, our newsletter will introduce you to the incredible people and innovative programs that are advancing equity across the City. This month, we are highlighting Elise Roberts, a Planning Analyst for the Development Services Planning Bureau. |
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Elise Roberts
Planning Analyst
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Elise Roberts is a Planning Analyst for the Development Services Planning Bureau, assisting with long-range and historic planning initiatives and programs. Her focus is communications, outreach and community engagement. Through this important work, the Planning team is striving hard to be inclusive in all aspects of its processes, from translation of public hearing notices to developing and implementing community driven and multi-lingual strategies for engaging and uplifting traditionally under-represented community voices in planning processes. One of our many goals in Planning is to increase civic engagement, especially amongst historically disempowered groups, monolingual non-English-speaking residents, small business owners, youth and seniors and to help create more inclusive, healthy, safe and thriving communities and neighborhoods for all Long Beach residents. |
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Programs, Announcements, & Upcoming Events |
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Come and join the largest traditional and largest Dutch Orange Party in SoCal. Get a taste of Dutch food, music, culture and friends!
Date & time: Sunday, May 1, 2022 from 11:00 AM – 5:00 PM PDT
Location: Gemmrig P.O.A. Park
7390 Carson Blvd Long Beach, CA 90808
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AAPI Children's Day Event |
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Attend this very special event at El Dorada to learn about Children’s Day (or Japanese Boy’s Day) with a short Storytime, crafts, activities, and traditional Japanese sweets.
Date & Time: Thursday, May 5 from 3-4pm.
Location: El Dorado Library, 2900 Studebaker Rd.
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Introduction to Angkor Civilization |
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Los Altos Library celebrates Asian Pacific Islander Heritage Month. Join an amazing lecture that introduces the Angkorian World! We will discuss some findings from the University of Hawai’i’s part of The Greater Angkor Project that highlights how people lived and worked in this ancient kingdom.
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Date and Time: Thursday, May 5, 2022 @ 5:30pm
Location: Los Altos Library, 5614 Britton Drive
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Local History Lecture Series at The Miller Room: Cambodians in Long Beach |
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If you've ever wondered why Long Beach has the largest community of Cambodians outside Southeast Asia, you won’t want to miss this talk!
Date and time: Sat, May 7, 2022. 3:00 PM – 4:30 PM PDT
Location: Billie Jean King Main Library, 200 West Broadway
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22nd KJLH Women’s Health Expo |
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After two virtual years, the 22nd Annual KJLH Women’s Health Expo is returning to the Long Beach Convention and Entertainment Center, 300 E Ocean Blvd, Long Beach, CA 90802, as an in-person event on Saturday, May 21, 2022— presented by Black Infant Health Long Beach and Fresno as the title sponsor! This year’s event will feature dynamic keynote speakers and panelists sharing culturally relevant information on topics vital to the health and wellness of Black birthing persons and their families.
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Small Business and Nonprofit Relief |
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Want to make a change in Long Beach while meeting new youth and gaining new skills? Apply to the Healthy Long Beach Youth Leadership Program!
Youth will learn leadership building and civic engagement in community issues to promote positive change for both themselves and their community. Please apply by June 3, 2022 by visiting bit.ly/36S9MRt
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City's First-Ever Youth Advisory Council |
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Long Beach, CA – The City of Long Beach is now accepting applications for the Office of Youth Development’s first-ever Youth Advisory Council through Friday, May 27, 2022. The Youth Advisory Council will consist of a body of 11 young people 16 to 26 years old who will help influence the implementation of the Youth and Emerging Adults Strategic Plan (YSP) and the upcoming Youth Fund, ensuring that youth voices are uplifted throughout the City.
To be eligible, applicants must:
*Be between the ages of 16 to 26
*Reside in Long beach
*Be available to meet at-least once a month
*Have a passion for issues affecting youth in Long Beach
Applications may be submitted online and hard copy applications are available at the Ron R. Arias Health Equity Center (6335 Myrtle Ave.) and at any Long Beach Public Library location. Applications will be accepted until May 13. Additional application details are available on the Office of Youth Development Youth Advisory Council Application webpage.
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Long Beach Recovery Act Program Updates |
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Small Business Grant Applications |
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The City has launched the Long Beach Recovery Act Small Business and Non-Profit Relief grants, new recovery programs to help small businesses and nonprofits that have experienced financial hardship due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The grants will provide working capital to eligible small businesses and nonprofits to help them pay for a variety of business expenses, such as payroll, rent, personal protective equipment (PPE), repairs or equipment, technology upgrades, marketing and more. The application period will close May 15, 2022 at 8:00 p.m. (PDT). Small businesses and nonprofits can access free technical assistance to prepare and submit applications by contacting the City’s BizCare Hotline at 562-570-4BIZ (4249) or emailing 4Biz@longbeach.gov. The hotline operates Mondays through Fridays from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Both voicemails and emails received will be responded to within 24 hours for customers that contact the BizCare team after normal working hours. For more information, visit: www.longbeach.gov/smallbizgrants. Additional information about the Long Beach Recovery Act is available at longbeach.gov/recovery.
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The application deadline for the Long Beach Recovery Act Nonprofit Relief Grant Program has been extended from May 15 to June 15, 2022. In addition to the application extension, the deadline for applying organizations to obtain a business license (a requirement for grant eligibility) has been extended to July 15, 2022. The Nonprofit Relief Grant Program provides assistance to small nonprofits in Long Beach that have experienced financial hardship due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Now until 8 p.m. on June 15, 2022, eligible nonprofits can apply to receive working capital from $5,000 and to up to $25,000 to help pay for a variety of business expenses. Applications for the Nonprofit Relief Grant Program can be submitted through LiveStories, the City’s vendor application portal. Additional information, including eligibility requirements, required documentation, application questions and the application process, is available at longbeach.gov/smallbizgrants.
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Long Beach Recovery Act Contracting Opportunities |
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The City of Long Beach is seeking partner organizations for various Long Beach Recovery Act (LB Recovery Act)-related contracting opportunities. Now through the end of summer 2022, eligible organizations will have the opportunity to submit proposals for various programs and services geared toward the economic and public health recovery of the Long Beach community. Many LB Recovery Act programs are designed to partner with community-based organizations and businesses for program implementation. These procurement opportunities are advertised on the LB Recovery page, and additional opportunities will be added on a regular basis as more information becomes available. To submit a proposal for consideration, vendors are required to register in the City’s online procurement portal, PlanetBids.
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Long Beach New Procurement Program
"Long Beach Buys"
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The City of Long Beach announced it will transition to a new e-procurement software platform this May. Long Beach Buys, powered by Periscope’s ePro software, is a modern system that will widely enhance the City’s procurement abilities, including the lowering of barriers for small, local and disadvantaged vendors and improved contract management. Long Beach Buys will replace the City’s existing e-procurement platform. |
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MONDAY & WEDNESDAY:
ATLANTIC PLAZA PARK
CRAFTMAN VILLAGE PARK
TUESDAY & THURSDAY:
ROSE PARK
17TH STREET
FRIDAY:
23RD STREET
GRACE PARK
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The City of Long Beach invites members of the public to participate in the Mobile Recess Program, a program that will provide opportunities for youth in target neighborhoods to connect, learn, and play. Stop by one of our locations where the Parks and Recreation staff will lead participants through a variety of fun supervised activities for youth ages 5-14 from March 1- June 17 between
2:30 p.m. – 5:00 p.m.
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Nutrition Security Community Food Access Programs & Emergency Food Distribution RFP’s |
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The City of Long Beach Department of Health and Human Services (Health Department) has launched two Request for Proposals (RFPs) to provide support to nonprofits or community-based organizations to establish, continue and/or expand programs that improve access to nutrition assistance programs and provide food distribution events to populations most impacted by COVID-19 and experiencing high levels of nutrition insecurity. Specific details related to project scope areas, eligibility requirements and submission instructions are available at PlanetBids for the Emergency Food Distribution Events RFP and Community Food Access Projects RFP. The City also has developed an instructional video about the registration process.
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Promotora/Community Health Champion Training and Technical Assistance Provider RFP |
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The City of Long Beach has launched a Request for Proposals (RFPs) seeking an organization to partner with the City’s Department of Health and Human Services and local organizations to provide training and technical assistance for a cohort of community-based organizations (CBOs) engaged in the Promotora/Community Health Champions Program who will work to create a more robust network of Health Champions in Long Beach. Eligible organizations are encouraged to submit proposals through the City’s Vendor Portal, PlanetBids, by 11 a.m. on May 23, 2022.
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The City of Long Beach has expanded its LB Resource Line, an informational hotline that provides free and confidential support to anyone who lives, works, learns or plays in Long Beach and needs assistance finding and accessing local community resources and social services. The LB Resource Line launched in March 2020 during the COVID-19 Safer-At-Home health orders to connect older adults to critical pandemic-related information, resources and services. The line has now expanded its services to provide support to all Long Beach residents, and callers can now connect in real time with a professionally trained Resource Navigator for support. The LB Resource Line is available by calling 562.570.4246 weekdays from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Callers who are unable to connect to a Resource Navigator during normal business hours may leave a voicemail and their call will be returned within 24 hours. Residents can also submit an Assistance Request Form online to connect with a Resource Navigator and receive information and assistance in topics such as: Housing, Food access, Physical and mental health, Utilities, Transportation, and Legal Aid.
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Creative Economy Grants Pre-Launch |
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The City of Long Beach announced details for its Creative Economy Grants Program, funded by the Long Beach Recovery Act, including $900,000 in funding to support local arts and cultural organizations. This program will provide funding to local arts, culture and history nonprofits and professional artists to be utilized for operational recovery, public murals, community projects and professional artist fellowships. The City is partnering with the Arts Council for Long Beach (ArtsLB) to administer a portion of the grants. The application period for all programs begins May 2, 2022, and closes June 10, 2022, with the exception of the Public Mural Program, which will be open through August 5, 2022. Additional information regarding the application process and eligibility requirements can be found on the ArtsLB website. Additionally, under the Creative Economy Grant Program, the City will provide direct funding to support the development of cultural centers citywide through the Cultural Center Grants, administered by the City Manager’s Office. Applications will be accepted May 2 through June 10, 2022, on the City’s LB Recovery Act webpage.
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LA County Health Order requires Masking in all Public Transit and Indoor Transit Hubs |
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On April 21, the County of Los Angeles released a new Health Order that continues to require masking in all public transit within L.A. County and L.A. County indoor public transportation hubs. Per the County’s revised Order, masking continues to be required for everyone 2 years of age and older, regardless of their COVID-19 vaccination status, on public transit within the County. This includes wearing masks on commuter trains, subways, buses, taxis and ride-shares. Masking continues to also be required in indoor public transportation hubs including airport and bus terminals, train and subway stations, seaport or other indoor port terminals, or any other indoor area that serves as a transportation hub. |
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Equity and Human Relations Commission |
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When: Wednesday, May 4, at 6 pm
Meeting ID: 959 4884 6331
Passcode: 061120
Location:
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The mission of the Equity and Human Relations Commission is to cultivate and sustain equity, diversity, and inclusion in the City through accountability and measurable outcomes to provide accountability and transparency in government in the city. Please use this link to learn more about the Commission.
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