The Committee Against Anti-Asian Violence (CAAAV) was started in 1986. It has since been working with Asian communities on issues of racially motivated violence and police brutality. CAAAV brings together Asians of different nationalities, ethnicities and generations to address issues of racism, anti-immigration discrimination and economic injustice. CAAAV's most visible success has been in assisting hundreds of victims of anti-Asian violence over the last eight years. In addition to this visible task of fighting anti-Asian violence related cases, CAAAV seeks to unite New York's Asian communities so as to force changes in the police department, criminal justice system, public policy and media representations. Further CAAAV is involved in organizing projects with the Chinese, Korean, South Asian and the South East Asian immigrant communities in areas of youth leadership and worker organizing.

Interested in helping CAAAV ... Click here

This is the information on the demonstration CAAAV held on March 5th

CHINATOWN IS NOT FOR SALE!

Come To A Rally Against A RACIST SLUMLORD!

PROTECT THE RIGHTS OF TENANTS TO ORGANIZE!

WHEN: TUESDAY, MARCH 5, 3:30-5:00PM

WHERE: 815 BROADWAY, (NEAR 12TH ST), NYC

166 ELIZABETH STREET is a residential building on the corner of Elizabeth Street and Kenmare, where Chinatown meets SoHo. The tenants of 166 Elizabeth Street are mostly low-income Chinese and Latino immigrants. In March 2000, Benjamin Shaoul of Elizabeth Realty Associates, LLC. purchased the building with a mortgage from Dime Savings Bank. Since then, Elizabeth Realty has started eviction proceedings against seven of the eleven Chinese tenants in the building, has pressured all other tenants with buy-outs, did not provide gas for more than four months (July-October 2000), and conducted construction in vacant units and in public areas in flagrant violation of Department of Buildings regulations.

Furthermore, he retaliated against tenants and organizers for their organizing activities, prevented organizers from entering the building, and repeatedly made racist remarks.
“I have nothing against Chinese; I just don't want so many of them in my building." -Benjamin Shaoul, a landlord of 166 Elizabeth Street.

On January 16, 2002, Benjamin Shaoul and his father, Abe, filed a $20 million lawsuit against CAAAV and its organizers. Ironically, his allegations against the organizers of CAAAV include harassment and intimidation, amongst other baseless allegations. The Shaouls, by filing this lawsuit, are attempting to interfere with the First Amendment rights of the tenants and their supporters.

WE ask for your support to protect communities of color from landlord's displacement. Join us at a rally and demonstration to support the 166 Elizabeth tenants struggle against displacement.

CAAAV: ORGANIZING ASIAN COMMUNITIES
CHINATOWN JUSTICE PROJECT (CJP)
191 East 3rd Street, New York, NY 10009
Telephone: (212) 473-6485
E-Mail: cjp@caaav.org

Other related links

CAAAV wins Union Square Awards to Grassroot Activists, 2000

CAAAV 2001 National Finalists from Leadership for a Changing World

Norwood News: Welfare Reform, and Translation Services for NYC Schools and Hospitals

CAAAV Fighting Against Sexual Harassment

Domestic Workers Rights (pdf file, needs Adobe Acrobat Reader)

People for Peace

Colorlines article: "Unsettled Refugees"

Sanskriti article: "Reshaping Immigrant Identity Politics"

AsianWeek article: "A Call for Peace: Ground Zero Immigrants Groups Defend Displaced Workers"