PUBLIC TESTIMONY
Testimony by Bella SoYoung Park, Bilingual Mental Health Counselor and Case Manager at Korean American Family Service Center (KAFSC)
4:22:35
·
115 sec
Bella SoYoung Park, representing the Korean American Family Service Center (KAFSC), testified in support of expanding programs like B-HEARD for mental health crisis response. She emphasized the importance of culturally and linguistically competent services for immigrant survivors of gender-based violence.
- KAFSC strongly supports mental health crisis responses that prioritize care, compassion, and cultural understanding over law enforcement intervention alone.
- Park urged the city to equip B-HEARD teams with cultural competency and linguistic access, and to fund community-based organizations like KAFSC.
- She highlighted the need for a more inclusive and responsive mental health care system that partners with trusted providers in immigrant communities.
Bella SoYoung Park
4:22:35
Hi.
4:22:36
Thank you all the council members and chairs for the opportunity to testify today.
4:22:41
My name is Bella Soyoung Park, bilingual mental health counselor and case manager, and I'm here on behalf of the Korean American Korean American Family Service Center or KFSC as part of this Asian American mental health roundtable.
4:22:55
At KFSC, we work to empower immigrant survivors of gender based violence with the focus on culturally and linguist strictly competent services.
4:23:05
Our clients are often among the most vulnerable populations facing multiple barriers to accessing the support they need due to language, culture, and stigma, particularly in times of mental health crisis KFSC stands in strong support of expanding programs like we heard, which align with our core belief and should be under the assumption that mental health crisis should be met with care, compassion, and cultural understanding by trained professionals NOT BY LAW ENFORCEMENT ALONE.
4:23:33
DURING THE TIMES AND MANY OF OUR SURVIVORS STRUGGLE WITH MENTAL HEALTH CHALLENGES, INCLUDING SECRET TRAUMA, OFTEN RESULTING FROM THEIR INTERACTION WITH POLICE OFFICERS, HAVING RESPONDERS LIKE US, who can understand their cultural nuances and can communicate in their own languages has been essential to ensuring the safety and proper care.
4:23:53
So with all of these being said, we urged the city to provide the resources needed to equip be heard programs and teams with cultural competency and linguistic access and to fund community based organizations like KFSC who have long been trusted providers of care in immigrant communities.
4:24:10
Our clients deserve a response that prioritizes their mental health and respects their cultural background ensuring they're treated with dignity and receive the care they need.
4:24:19
We hope to see we hope to see the city further invest in this life saving program and partner with organizations like ours to create a more inclusive and responsive mental health care system.
4:24:29
Thank you for your time and consideration.
