Notable Media
Highlights by the numbers!
Amount |
Description of the accomplishment |
|---|---|
>7300 Nights |
Sheltered Nights, provided by the NJNP Collective Housing to Black and Brown Trans Women. |
23 |
Actions Planned/ Participated in |
21 Trans Participants |
Received paid organizing training as a part of our Organizing Training Program and the #Camp50 Actioncamp we hosted last May. |
>$85,000!! |
Raised for our mobilization, housing, and mutual aid projects. |
$0 or Support |
Provided by the Local or Federal Government. |
155 |
Volunteers mobilized |
500 - 1000 |
Meals served monthly at different NJNP Collective Houses. |
46 Individuals |
Amount of trans individuals NJNP supported being connected to legal or medical help. This looks like but is not limited to:
|
Winter 2019
We started 2019 with a ambitious call to action for #Stonewall50 , we continued organizing locally having bi-weekly meetings; planning just what that looks like.
As we January went into February and Feb into March, plans for a 2 week action camp, called #Camp50 ; several actions around Sex Work Decriminalization, DC’s Housing Policies and criminalization; and #BALL50, a Kiki Ball to honor Sylvia and Marsha P. Legacies.
During this time capacity within the NJNP Collective was growing. By March our Bi-Monthly House meetings had more than 25 people in attendance. In April, after completing another round of our Organizer Training Program (NJNP Provides organizing training to Black and Brown Trans Sex Workers while providing them stipends as an alternative form of employment to street based sex work.), program participants along with NJNP Organizers continued on to help with #Camp50 coordination and planning different courses for community members to participate in.
MAY 2019
This past May was a whirlwind as we spent the first two weeks preparing for our first ever Actioncamp. It was not without it’s challenges:
- we were under budgeted by nearly $8,000
- Earlier on we faced difficulties securing venues and had to take on additional costs.
- some venues weren’t fully prepared for us which added to delays and frustrations
- We experienced difficulties with our bank account that continued late into June.
We were committed to this happening so we pressed to continue on. We had dance classes and modeling sessions, moments of joy and moments of healing. We made banners, and practiced street theater, we learned our about our political histories and our personal ones too.
We know for a lot of folks who can benefit the most from these events often aren’t able to attend due to travel costs, admission fees and the fact that often many working class, black and brown trans and queer people are more focus on spending that time obtaining resources for theirs and their loved ones day to day needs. While still under budget fortunately we still were able to fundraise enough funds to provide stipends to 13 Black and Brown Trans participants and facilitators including 8 Black Trans Sex Workers. Overall we had over 86 people attend the #Camp50 action camp events and mobilized 36 volunteers! Participants were able to attend workshops and trainings on Direct Action, organizing and political education; built abolition history timelines and participated in healing skillshares.
We are so grateful for our incredible #Camp50 Community Partners BYP100, Black Lives Matter DMV, The Festival Center, HIPS, Restaurant and Opportunities Center DC, Nelwat Ishkamewe, Trans Latinx DMV, Washington Legal Clinic and Baltimore Transgender Alliance.
June 2019
We thrusted into the month of June with a banner drop and climb action in support of sex work decriminalization one day before a new bill to do that very thing was introduced into DC City Council.
“We knew this year had to be different, with a new bill and a new opportunity we knew we had to go harder, we needed to put council on notice to take this serious this time” said Emmelia Talarico, one of the NJNP Climbers.
Later that week NJNP took action again, this time at the DC Dyke March whose theme was ‘Dykes Against Displacement’ , which raised funds for NJNP and other community groups fighting displacement and finally we ended the weekend with Ball 50 .
Ball50 is a ball that is inspired by the struggles and accomplishments of our fellow trans and queer brothers, sisters and siblings who fought for the right to party as who they are and not as who society wants them to be.
As we continued to move through June, the affects of our bank account troubles were really being felt. The funds that we had direct access to was used on NJNP Collective costs for June as well as the actions and the Ball. We were so incredibly grateful for all of those who fundraised and supported us throughout pride month; the problem was that we couldn’t access any of it during that time. With several loved ones in our circles struggling and a tick of complaints and harassment from neighbors along with all of these stresses, the NJNP Collective Members were really feeling the pressure as we moved closer to July.
On the 19th, on the same day a collective member was released from the hospital for a crisis; a group of people were threatening members of the collective outside of our home, misgendering and calling them slurs and threatening to take their lives. With the murders of two Black Trans Women from the community in the past few months, tensions and emotions were already running high. Hours later after one of NJNP Lead Organizers was attacked down the street and followed home. The attacker threw a rock at our house and made hand signals like he was loading a gun.
This followed other local attacks on Trans and Queer community members and unfortunately was not the end to collective members stress. Days following the attacks we learned that not only has the DCRA opened an investigation into the collective but that neighbors also had the health department coming after us as well over petty trash issues. As hard as we know it would be to relive another traumatic housing search like the one we did last summer, that our current situation isn’t working and decided our best option was to pursue a safer housing situation.
We just were not getting a break! Yet when invited to speak of our experiences at Vigil Against The Violence , we did not join others in calls for greater criminalization. We did not join others demands for more money from a corrupt local government while ignoring the larger public housing crisis and lack of material support in DC’s Black and Brown Communities.
We instead demanded those with most power in the LGBT Community to hold our elected leaders accountable. To fight for sex work decriminalization. And to truly, not just performatively; support those in our community most impacted by hate & violence.
The following week on June 28th, the 50th anniversary of the Stonewall Riots; It was giving City Council Realness as we took our fight directly to the Wilson Building for Stonewall50 Rally + Action to DecrimNow.
We had spent the month prior doing outreach to community groups and organizations to sign on to our DecrimNow Organization sign on letter and was ready to deliver it to members of City Council with more than 64 organizations signed on (at the time.) In particular, we were planning to visit members of the Judiciary and Safety Committee but decided to also stop by Council Chair Mendelson who has been a staunch opponent of sex work decriminalization.
Chair Mendelson met with us the longest as we pleaded our fight. He pivoted consistently, blaming Trump for the attacks; when we suggested that it is the City’s responsibility to protect and fight for their most marginalized despite who is in the White House he rebuffed ‘The City Government is not homophobic’ proceeding to shift the burden onto D.C. Constituents and demanded where our outrage was for Bowser. ( We had longtime been a loud critic of Mayor Bowser’s policies. )
Edger to make it to other Council Members Offices before the left for the evening, we waited until he suggested he wasn’t passing the buck to continue on to the rest of our office visits.
The Rally pressed on with a blast. We heard from so many Black Trans Women about their lived experiences engaging in Sex Work, as well as performances from NJNP and HIPS members. The Evening was nothing but love.
SWAC @ A retreat, energized and ready to kick some butt💪💋@CASS @HIPSDC @NJNP_DC @BYP100 @whitmanwalker @ the whole team who couldn't make it, WE ROCK! pic.twitter.com/aQPpE9Y8QL
— Tamika (@tamikahs66) July 24, 2019
We spent the rest of the summer looking for new housing. Initially, we struggled to find a new home while dealing with a series of setbacks from our existing landlord but after establishing a good process we worked with community and held three fundraising events, established multiple working groups of activists and collective members to work together on number of logistical needs from fundraising, to house searching and viewing, to application and signer/co-signer management.
After three months of intensively searching for housing, we found new housing for the NJNP Collective! In all, we raised over $25,000 over the span of 3 months; thanks to you and so many others! $5,000 went into August Housing costs, $14,000 went into the first months rent and deposit for two homes, $2600 went into AirBNB and temporary housing situations after we had to leave to old collective but were still without adequate housing. $500 was spent on uhaul and moving supplies, $800 into materials to fix damages to the old home, more than $2500 on application fees, and $600 on utilities. The remaining amount raised went into covering October costs for the two new NJNP locations.
October 17th #DecrimNow Hearing!
Since 2017 NJNP has been fighting alongside hundreds of activists and sex workers in DC — in a cross movement coalition with more than 60 Community based organizations ranging from medical and service providers, to labor and faith based organizations, grassroots advocacy groups and more — for a city council hearing on decriminalizing sex work in Washington, D.C.
NJNP mobilized more than a dozen of our own members and joined dozens of others from different community groups to provide testimony in what turned into a 14 hour long day. Read a full write up of the days events,here on reason.com
As we kept pressure high on leaders as we rolled into November — we distributed yard signs in support of #DecrimNow, attended meetings with community groups and organizations to join the coalition in support of DecrimNow, and protested inside the offices of Michelle Garcia, the director of the District of Columbia Office of Victim Services and Justice Grants; over the OVSJG testimony on behalf of the Mayor Bowser’s Administration at the October 17th City Council Hearing.
On November 11th, our great friends over at Current Movements released a film about our work and collective members spoke at the screening. Later the following week we participated in DC and Montgomery Countys’ (MD) Transgender Day of Rememberance events as we celebrated the lives of the ones we lost, we prepared the next day for our long fight ahead pressuring leaders of Mayor Bowser’s Administration to hold our mayor accountable.
Still not done!
As the year comes to an end and the weather continues to cool, No Justice No Pride isn’t stopping! Since moving into the two homes, the NJNP Collective has still needed to expand and we are now raising funds to support a third home.
WE CAN’T FALL SHORT!
Going into 2020, we need to be stronger than ever in the fight for #DecrimNow, continuing the pressure on our elected leaders going into the budget season, the primaries and beyond. We need to continue our fierce advocacy for equitable housing while building the world that we want to see with community based solutions. Please continue supporting our crucially needed work!