Blog — Asian Community Development Corporation

Christine Nguyen

Affordable Housing and Health Study

Carolyn, Virginia and Mehreen in the back row with ACDC staff

Carolyn, Virginia and Mehreen in the back row with ACDC staff

ACDC has been working with a team of researchers from Tufts University and MIT, on a collaborative community health survey to explore how and to what extent affordable housing improves various health factors such as nutrition and safety.

Thank you to Carolyn Rubin, Ed.D, an Assistant Professor at the Tufts University School of Medicine, Department of Public Health, Virginia Chomitz, PhD, MS, an Associate Professor also at the Tufts University School of Medicine, and Mehreen Ismail, MPH, a doctoral student in the Food Policy and Applied Nutrition program at the Tufts University Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy, and to Mariana Arcaya, ScD, MCP, Assistant Professor of Urban Planning and Public Health at MIT's Department of Urban Studies and Planning, who worked with ACDC to develop the survey, conduct the survey and record the survey results. Carolyn, Virginia and Mariana recently shared with us the preliminary results.

The study, which was also translated into Chinese and Spanish, focuses two sets of households, the first set (56 households) were those who were selected via lottery to move into an affordable rental at 66 Hudson at One Greenway, ACDC's affordable development completed in 2015. The second group are those who are still on a waitlist for affordable housing and have not yet moved into an affordable rental or affordable condo/house. The preliminary study focused on the first group, those who now live in affordable housing. A few highlights from the survey results:

  • 75% of respondents felt that their living in affordable housing in Chinatown enabled them to meet their basic needs, meaning the location was close to amenities such as grocery stores, work, school and the hospital.
  • 75% reported being able to find fresh fruits and vegetables nearby.
  • Respondents who previously lived in suburban areas (Weymouth, etc) found that living in Chinatown was more convenient to meet their basic needs.
  • 50% of the households reported that their previous living situation was overcrowded.
  • One respondent commented, "Chinatown is a better place to live for older individuals", and explained that there was more time to do other activities because they were not spending as much time commuting. They also mentioned appreciating the shorter distances they needed to walk to get to various amenities, and how walking further distances increases their arthritic pain during colder months.

We are working to secure additional funding to continue the study and follow up with those who are still on a waiting list for affordable housing, in addition to:

  • exploring the nuances of the responses from the preliminary study;
  • conducting qualitative research to connect with survey respondents on their food intake and nutritional habits;
  • exploring the effects of gentrification on the food environment and how that affects those who live in affordable housing (i.e. Whole Foods moving into a gentrifying neighborhood vs a grocery store with more affordable prices);
  • surveying if those living in affordable housing still deal with food insecurity and to what extent;
  • and continuing to follow up with each group to explore these health factors over time.
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Reflections: Amy

Amy (left) pictured with Carro, a former A-VOYCE youth from 10 years ago, in front of the new community mural in Dorchester's Fields Corner.

Amy (left) pictured with Carro, a former A-VOYCE youth from 10 years ago, in front of the new community mural in Dorchester's Fields Corner.

ACDC started running youth programs in 2003, creating projects like the Chinatown Banquet, a series of short films featuring Chinatown’s history and community members. Asians Voices of Organized Youth for Community Empowerment (A-VOYCE) was developed in 2005. The program was conceptualized by a group of youth from prior years, who identified the lack of Asian American-centered or Chinese-language programming on the radio. The youth curated a public radio program discussing cultural and social issues, while developing the knowledge and skills to use media as a social and political organizing tool.

Amy Cheung served as one of the program’s first coordinators. With experience as a radio station DJ in college and a growing passion for working with youth, Amy found an opportunity to serve as an AmeriCorps Massachusetts Promise Fellow at ACDC to implement the A-VOYCE program, for which the previous youth cohort and program coordinator had set the objectives.

“One of the most important lessons that I still carry from this experience is looking at cities and places as being alive and evolving. I think that with the radio and walking tour project having evolved into A-VOYCE as a cohesive youth program, it allowed for this exploration of not just identity, but also of place. When you do this kind of work you see how alive a neighborhood is and changes over time. Working with ACDC sparked an interest in community and urban planning and placemaking. I find myself more observant, wondering how a neighborhood has evolved and who was part of that process. You come to realize and appreciate how vibrant cities are. I remember taking youth on a college tour and while on the commuter rail, one of the them was in awe of the drastically different environment in the suburbs. It was a lesson on wealth and income inequality, and thinking about how we move through the world and observe these differences.”

Amy recalls how facilitating a group outside of an academic setting created impactful, relational moments, “These experiences have a lot of value because as a young person going through the challenges of adolescence and life, having a fun and safe community can go a long way. When I got married a few years ago, I invited my former youth because a lot of my identity today is so intimately tied to my experiences as a young adult and doing youth work. They were an important part of that journey.

“I currently serve on ACDC’s board where I offer my perspective on programs and youth work. It’s been really amazing to see how the board is so supportive of youth work, especially because of how integral youth are in community development work overall.”

Reflections: Mei-Hua

Mei-Hua Li AR 2.jpg

Mei-Hua joined A-VOYCE when she was a freshman in high school, nearly a decade ago, after learning about this program through the Boston Youth Fund. Although the history classes in school touched on immigration in the US, Mei-Hua realized that the curriculum did not include much on Asian immigrant narratives. Only through ACDC did she learn about the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882, which was the first law in the US implemented to prevent a specific ethnic group from immigrating to the United States. She took the initiative to further research the Act, incorporated it into her school papers, and shared this part of history with Chinatown walking tour visitors.

As told by Mei-Hua Li:

“Back then, I was not an outspoken person, but A-VOYCE emphasized public speaking skills and how to advocate for ourselves. I believe this is important to teach young Asians and Asian Americans because traditionally, we tend to refrain from sharing our ideas in school or in the community. Working with A-VOYCE was a good starting point to develop my identity as a teenager, but also to understand how I can make an impact. As a result, I became more involved with the Culture Club at my high school and eventually became the President. In college, I joined the Asian Studies Initiative at Boston University (ASIABU), an academic group on campus to spread awareness about Asian culture. Eventually, I became more involved with my ethnic church, and continued to serve fellow immigrants through teaching them conversational ESL.

I am a first generation immigrant and the first in my family to graduate from college. I came to the US when I was 11 years old, and kept strong ties to my Chinese heritage after I moved here. In high school, I felt conflicted between identifying as Asian and American. Alan Ratliff and Amy Cheung, former A-VOYCE coordinators, helped me realize that I can be both. I wrote about this experience in college applications.

Amy was really helpful when I applied to college. She helped me recognize my strengths, and encouraged me to submit my story as a first-generation immigrant to the Harvard Education Review. I was so excited when it was published! That experience taught me that I could share my story and hopefully have a positive impact on those who are going through similar experiences.

I learned about gentrification from ACDC, and started to notice outside developers building luxury condos in Chinatown, driving out long-term residents. It felt like Chinatown was losing its sense of community. As a new immigrant, living in a tight-knit community helped my family transition to life in the US. It benefitted us so much. Seeing that same community starting to dissolve is devastating.

Now, as a young adult, I can reflect on my experience with ACDC and see how A-VOYCE cultivated a sense of community for me, how I want to help fellow immigrants. As a former Chinatown resident and being bilingual, I have the skills and perspective to help others. I studied speech therapy, and now I’m in graduate school studying behavioral therapy. After high school, I continued to volunteer at ACDC for various events and projects, and though I haven’t been as active in the last few years, the passion for serving the community that I developed has stayed with me. I get to combine my love of helping others with my bilingual skills to work with Chinese-speaking families with children who have special needs.

If I didn’t join A-VOYCE, my life would be very different. I might have gone to another youth program, but ACDC’s focus on community development and affordable housing—my family also lived in affordable housing—made me realize how it is so important that we continue to advocate for this. It’s amazing that there are organizations like ACDC that seek the wellness of low-income families and programs like A-VOYCE to help youth to find a place where they feel belong and contribute to the community where they live in.”