Black & Pink National

I'm applying for The Elevate Prize because I recognize that there is a long history of Black trans women who have created solutions in our communities, and there is also a long history of their names, their impact, and their innovations either being erased or co-opted. Opportunities like this prize allow for my work to be acknowledged, for my identities to be affirmed and amplified, and ensure my story and my work cannot be erased. Additionally, opportunities like this prize allow others with shared lived experiences to my own to know that someone like them has moved along this path before, and they will not need to wonder if someone has come before them. 

The impact of systems of oppression on LGBTQIA2S+ youth and youth living with HIV/AIDS often feels insurmountable. We are actively witnessing violent and harmful legislation sweep across the country which is further stigmatizing and criminalizing the lives of trans youth, and witnessing, in real time, the loss of access to the life these young people deserve. Black & Pink National's Opportunity Campus is one solution we are developing to create a space for young LGBTQIA2S+ people to have access to everything they need, desire, and deserve. 

I am an unexpected Executive Director of a national organization which seeks to dismantle all barriers to people in my community being able to access their liberation. I am also a Black trans woman who is formerly incarcerated, who has navigated 20 years of living with HIV. There are times when I can look at the barriers that I have overcome, and there are other times where I need to lean into those barriers because I'm learning how to navigate my way through them. My duty and accountability to my community is to get all of us past the barriers which prevent us from living our best, most liberated lives. 

My vision is just that: Of living in a society where all barriers to people accessing safety, health, wellness, and happiness have been dismantled and everyone has access to all the resources they need within their communities. We are doing the work which dismantles this society of the Haves and Have Nots. We believe this is entirely possible if we are intentional with how we approach this work, and continue to engage in meaningful leadership development with people who are most impacted by the violent systems we fight daily.

Black & Pink National is a prison abolitionist organization dedicated to abolishing the criminal punishment system and liberating LGBTQIA2S+ people and people living with HIV/AIDS who are affected by that system through advocacy, support, and organizing. Our society increasingly calls for criminal legal reform, yet we remain one of the only organizations which is specifically addressing abolition by centering the needs of LGBTQIA2S+ people and people living with HIV/AIDS. Our newest youth-serving initiative, the Opportunity Campus, will disrupt the violent systems which impact LGBTQIA2S+ youth and transform the lived experiences of system-impacted trans and queer young people. 

LGBTQIA2S+ youth experience horrifying rates of homelessness due to family and community violence. 43% of LGBTQ+ youth experiencing homelessness have been forced out of their homes due to conflicts with their families about their sexuality/gender; and 62% of LGBTQ+ youth experiencing homelessness reported experiencing physical assault, while 38% reported experiencing sexual assault. Under the weight of anti-LGBTQIA2S+ violence, system-impacted trans and queer youth are perpetually forced into survival mode and are never given the chances they deserve to access safety and success. The Opportunity Campus will provide housing and wrap around support services and support young people in accessing their happiness and liberation. 

System-impacted LGBTQIA2S+ young people deserve to be supported in living their lives and achieving their dreams as defined by them- this is exactly what the Opportunity Campus will achieve. In addition to providing housing and wrap around support services, the Opportunity Campus programming strives to support young people and their families in their collective healing - By providing an affirming space in which LGBTQIA2S+ young people can feel supported and nurtured, and guiding them and their families through restorative processes, we are providing paths towards individual, familial, and community healing which will be felt by generations to come. 

Black & Pink National's work is fully centered in people, even when it is challenging - Existing within the nonprofit industrial complex, and supporting our members in the ways they need, requires constant re-navigation and strategizing. Our approach to service delivery, to program development, even to our funding, are all centered around our members. Our organization is proof that you can be innovative, impactful, and focused on people - We are a living, breathing theory of change as an agency that people deserve to be centered. As long as we center people, we will always get the impact we are looking for.

Black & Pink National's mission, vision, and values are not theoretical - They are factual, and based in our members' experiences, needs, and desires. This is not always the case in this work, and we are proud to challenge service delivery structures to transform processes to better serve our communities. By embodying our mission, vision, and values, we are able to explore endless avenues in order to get to our goal, and we also know that whatever avenue we take, we are maintaining who we are and who we want our communities to see and experience us as.

We believe abolitionist movement work is solely rooted in strengthening community and honoring the humanity in each of us. We envision a time where everyone is seen and valued in their full humanity, and we are proud to be able to deliver that on the micro level to our members day-to-day in the meantime, while we build towards the societal transformation which is required before all people's full humanity can be seen, valued, and affirmed.