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Cambodian Community Development Inc. (CCDI) is dedicated to serving the needs of the Cambodian community in the Bay Area. Since it's founding in 1997, CCDI has provided support to Cambodian Americans with language interpretation, cultural and linguistic education, legal and medical assistance, and much more.

Who we serve 

Cambodian Americans remain one of the most vulnerable and underserved populations in the US.  

Cambodian Americans tend to be overlooked because of their size in relation to other immigrant groups.  However, the population of Cambodians, particularly in the Bay Area, is deceptively large:

·              The total 2005 Cambodian population in the US was estimated at 217,438

·              California holds the largest concentration at 83,562

·              The Bay Area itself holds the fourth largest concentration of Cambodian Americans with an estimated 10,5521

Challenges faced by Cambodians in the US are intrinsically rooted in their flight from the genocide led by the Khmer Rouge, which was responsible for the death of as many as 3 million people—one third of the country’s population. 

For instance,  Cambodian Americans tend to suffer from poverty.  Most of refugees escaping the genocides were deposited directly into urban American poverty. Because most educated Cambodians and professionals did not survive the Khmer Rouge, the majority of Cambodians who immigrated were farmers or laborers who had little or no formal education.  56% of Cambodians in the Bay Area have less than a high school education. 4 Poverty amongst Cambodian Americans still remains prevalent.

·        The poverty rate of Cambodians in California is 40%

·        The child poverty rate of Cambodians in the Bay Area is 50%4

Furthermore, Cambodian Americans encounter a language barrier.

Another challenge Cambodian Americans face is the language barrier. Older generations of Cambodian immigrants, both adults and seniors, tend to struggle with speaking and understanding English:

·        44.2% speak English less than “very well”5

·        31.8% of Cambodian households are “Linguistically Isolated”4

 

CCDI strives to provide services for Cambodian Americans to help them overcome such tribulations and empower them for the future.  To make a contribution, please visit our Support CCDI section.

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5US Census Bureau (2005) S0201. Selected Population Profile in the United States. Cambodian alone or in any combination. 2005 American Community Survey. Retrieved March 14, 2008 from <http://factfinder.census.gov/servlet>

 

4 Asian Pacific American Legal Center (2005) The Diverse Face of Asians and Pacific Islanders in California: Asian & Pacific Islander Demographic Profile

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1 Pfeifer (2006) US Census Releases 2005 American Community Survey data for Southeast Asian Americans. Asian American Press. Retrieved May 21, 2008 from <http://www.hmongstudies.org/2005ACSArticle.html>