Sakhi for South Asian Survivors

Sakhi for South Asian Survivors represents the South Asian and Indo-Caribbean diaspora in a survivor-led movement for gender justice and to honor the collective and inherent power of all survivors of violence. 

In 1989, several trailblazing South Asian women founded Sakhi (“woman friend” in many South Asian languages). Over the past 36 years, Sakhi has transformed the conversation about gender-based violence in the South Asian and Indo-Caribbean diaspora. Today nearly 40 organizations use models we developed. We’ve helped win policy changes addressing immigration, economic abuse, language access in courts, anti-Asian bias, forced marriage, and more. 

As our name change last year to Sakhi for South Asian Survivors reflects, today Sakhi is a trailblazer—agile, and inclusive of all South Asians and Indo-Caribbeans regardless of how they identify. We envision a world free from violence, one where the South Asian and Indo-Caribbean diaspora experiences safety, healing, and liberation.

Sakhi provides trauma-responsive, linguistically- and culturally-specific services to South Asian and Indo-Caribbean survivors of gender-based violence across NYC. Our work is grounded in trust and sustained relationships within immigrant communities often excluded from traditional systems of care due to language, immigration status, race, and cultural stigma. We offer a continuum of services, including crisis intervention through our helpline, case management, individual and family mental health counseling, legal advocacy, youth and economic empowerment, housing support, food access, and community engagement.

All services are delivered in survivors’ preferred languages and rooted in lived experience. Our trauma-responsive approach centers emotional safety, cultural understanding, and survivor-defined goals. Programs are designed to respond to immediate crises while also supporting long-term healing, autonomy, and community connection.