Sometimes, we plan our Aragon Cares monthly events months in advance–but sometimes, something happens in the world that inspires us to donate to a certain cause ASAP. And for April, this was the case.
This month, we made a monetary donation to an organization in Oakland, CA, called Compassion In Oakland. Compassion In Oakland was formed in response to the recent surge of anti-Asian attacks all around the U.S., including California’s Bay Area.
Compassion
It started with Jacob Azevedo, who grew fed up with the violence and made a social media post offering to chaperone anyone within Oakland’s Chinatown neighborhood to help them feel safer. The post went viral, and hundreds of people reached out to join him. Now, Compassion In Oakland has grown into an organization of over 400 volunteers with a mission to protect, defend, and support Elderly people of Asian descent and bring them a sense of comfort and safety in public.
On the website, Compassion In Oakland offers a quick, simple form for somebody to “request a chaperone”. There are chaperones on stand-by that can assist somebody within 15 minutes, or they can be booked ahead of time. The chaperone will then accompany them as they walk around, do errands, walk home, etc. to lessen the fear and the risk for that person. “We aim to embrace the often forgotten, underserved, and vulnerable,” says the Compassion In Oakland website.
Joining the Cause
Aragon Research stands with the Asian community and against hate. We know that our donation is just the beginning of what we as individuals can do to fight against racial hate and injustice, but we hope that it is a step in the right direction. Jacob and the other volunteers at Compassion In Oakland are inspiring to us, and we hope that Compassion In Oakland inspires you to join the fight against anti-Asian attacks. Organizations like Compassion In Oakland bring a sense of hope in the midst of tragedy.
If you would like to donate to Compassion In Oakland, you can click here. Donations are processed through a fiscal sponsor, a non-profit organization called Insideout Writers. Donations will go towards things like alarms and safety materials, ads, translation services, volunteer supplies and materials, website and app development, and expansion to other cities.
We hope you enjoyed reading about this great organization. If you want to help this cause further, but aren’t sure where to start, check out these other amazing organizations that work to support Asian-Americans by providing a broad range of valuable resources: