Tuhina De O'Connor
Executive Director, New York Asian Women's Center

The New York Asian Women’s Center (NYAWC) strives to help battered women and their children overcome violence and govern their own lives, free of abuse. The Center also works to raise public awareness about domestic violence, advocate for the rights of battered women, and create an agenda for social change. The Center began in one tiny, hidden office with its phone locked in a file cabinet and its staff made up entirely of volunteers. Two decades later, 57 permanent staff members fluent in 15 Asian languages provide 400 families a year with services that include housing, counseling, legal referrals, and day care. Additionally, they field nearly 4,000 Hotline calls a year. The Center received the prestigious Governor's Award to End Domestic Violence in 2002.

In her 7 years as Executive Director, Tuhina De O'Connor has helped the New York Asian Women's Center (NYAWC) give hope to thousands of women fleeing domestic violence. Under her leadership, NYAWC has increased its shelter capacity six-fold.. Sensitive to the cultural and language barriers that can prevent many Asian women from leaving an abusive relationship, O'Connor has created a safe haven that provides both the concrete services and the emotional support that enable abused women to make a new start for themselves and their children. The Robin Hood Foundation Awarded Ms. O’Connor a 2003 Hero Award for fighting poverty in New York City.

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