Everything Everywhere All at Once

WELL THIS WEEK HAS BEEN A LOT, HASN’T IT. I’m tired. You’re tired. Let’s just do the fucking newsletter.

First:

It’s February 1, which means it’s Black History Month. As a mayonnaise American, I am not going to sit here and pontificate on the meaning of the month. It’s not mine to speak on. It is my place to acknowledge that the entire history of this country was made possible by the labor of Black people being forced to work against their own wills and interests and at the expense of so, so many of their lives, and that violence continues to this very fucking day. Every fucking day. It’s my place to acknowledge the privilege that the color of my skin gives me, and it’s my place to do what I can to repair and mitigate the harms that so many people with skin the color have done. So what I am going to do is ask you to broaden your circles, especially in the echo chambers that are social media platforms. Read Black authors. Buy from Black-owned shops. Follow more Black creators. Hell, just follow more Black people. Actually listen to what they have to say. Remember it is not their job to educate you; it is your job to be educated. And pay them. Black History Month challenge: give Black people money and don’t stop when February is over.

I don’t even know how to put January in context. And - Jesus, I can barely even summarize what’s happened since January 20. I wanted to put together a newsletter for the folks in my community, which is to say, the queers and the transes like myself, that contained resources and aid funds. I’m still going to do that, but first I need to tell you how fucking dystopian it has been trying to put this newsletter together. Look, I’m not hella popular on Threads or anything. I got a couple thousand followers, and a couple hundred close ones. When I ask for aid funds, I usually get a hundred likes or so, a couple dozen replies, a handful of shares.

When I first made a post asking for trans folks’ funds, I got two likes.

Threads is actively suppressing both mutual aid and trans content on their site, and more, I’m sure. I’ve had to make my posts in leet speak to circumvent the algorithm. I have said, and do mean, that I will stay on Threads until it is untenable because the community that has been built there is so vital, and because ceding ground when things get uncomfortable feels antithetical to the “First they came for,” lessons we should all by now have memorized. But it’s getting ugly out there fast. Trans people are being officially disappeared in name (for now) by the government. Trans people trying to get or update passports are having their documents confiscated, which signals a prelude to a different kind of disappearing.

I will be here. I will be here as long as I can. In this newsletter sure, on Threads, sure, whatever. But I will be here, in my community, with my people, for the long haul. My privilege demands it. My personal values demand it. And if nothing else, the tattoo on my arm which proudly reads, “There can be no compromise,” would feel pretty fucking asinine if I gave up and left, or stopped, or hid. So, no. I won’t be doing that.

First: aid funds for trans folks in need. Give what you can, and as always, share widely.

@niicccoooole: TW: pet loss/death, grief. it's been almost a week since we had to lay our darling Penelope to rest. I need help funding a nice memorial tattoo, and maybe some other remembrance pieces. my official ask is $120 to cover some costs until I get paid. our appointment last week took all of my last paycheck. Venmo: Nikki-Lewis97; CashApp: $JaimeNLewis; PayPal: @nicccoooole

@fizzydoor: I've got 3 kids. I'm trânz & disabled & looking for work [notoriously easy for both demographics, amirite?], and my wife is trânz disabled American veteran. And. Well... we know how America is treating trâns veterans right now. Or, not treating them. If anyone has some scratch to spare, I'm trying to responsibly plan for the SHTF. Can't do that when all money goes to housing/food/meds. CashApp & Venmo: [$/@]tataleh on both apps

@queenofelam: We need to raise 20kUSD as soon as inhumanly possible, because as a trans hijabi in a deep red area, we are concerned that our 2 year exit plan is not going to be fast enough, and that we won't be able to leave the country. Venmo: @queenofelam

@darksagecorpse: NOT URGENT. I have a great grocery order coming in tomorrow, thank you everyone! I would love it if I could raise some money for a new vape cart and a comfy desk chair through sales of my current writing stuff so I can really dig into LotusEater. NOT URGENT. Around ~$130 or so, I figure? To cover delivery and taxes. (Author’s note: the link is to their creator page, so you get a sick little interactive novel out of the deal) https://ziegander.itch.io

@sparrowsurviving: I'm a trans & disabled poet with a book coming out soon, and the preorder campaign (besides supporting me directly through book sales) is being done through bookshop.org supporting @panethnicpourovers! So they'll get a 10% commission of every book bought through the links in the preorder carrd 🎉✨️

Those last two take us pretty cleanly into trans owned shops, services, and content creators, starting with Sparrow’s mention above:

And finally, resources for trans folks. Apologies, as like my last edition, a few of these at the end will be very Pittsburgh-centric, because that’s where I am and what I know. However, many organizations like this are part of larger networks, or, at the very least, know of national or other regional organizations that may be able to help as well. I’m not saying just dip in and waste the time of local orgs by making them Google for you, but if you’re struggling to find a resource, never hesitate to reach out to someone who has a different network and community than you do. You never know who might be able to help, or lead you to the person who can help. But we’ll start with national/online ones first.

I wanna give a big shoutout to @commasplyce, my now IRL friend(!!), for putting together that huge chunk of PA-related resources. She’s a real one, and I’m so glad to know her (and her cat).

Lastly, I’m gonna do something I haven’t yet done:

This is my Ko-Fi. I don’t need anything right now, and all of the folks above should be your first priority. But my household is currently mapping out the next couple of years, and we’re not quite sure where it’s going to take us. I work adjacent to the government in a position that deals very much with federal money, and though the absolutely asinine federal funding executive order was already rescinded because it’s fucking ridiculous, I can’t be sure it won’t go the way of the former so-called Muslim ban and be brought back. We’re sort of stashing away all the extra money that we can, to an end we can’t yet foresee. I am extremely lucky in that I have low- and no-cost ways to get the medical care, gender-related and not, and that I have very good insurance, but again, it is tied to my job. Any money I receive will go to small comforts, and to Crumpet, and to a little bit of normalcy.

Have a resource you want to share or a mutual aid need? Submit it through the Mutual Aid Submission Form.

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