Bonus: Pride Donation Drive!

Hello friends, it’s Julie Saunders, creator of Believer and voice of Lara Campbell.  I hope you’re well. I’ve got some really epic, cool stuff coming your way later this summer, but right now, we are on the last day of Pride Month, and I just couldn’t let that go by. 

So much has been said and done over the last month or so to fight racism, police violence, LGBTQ discrimination, and we just can’t let that momentum go. But it’s also kind of stressful, so I thought I’d do kind of a silly thing to help keep the movement going.

Here’s the deal: send us proof of a donation to a cause that benefits Black Trans People, anywhere in the world. This can be a screenshot of a receipt, a “thank you for your donation” message from the organization, anything that shows you contributed. You can send it to any of the show’s social media pages -- we’re on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram at “believerpod” -- or email believerpod@gmail.com. 

In exchange, we will send you this amazing, adorable custom coloring book page by the artist Kathy Carlston. It’s an image of Bigfoot dressed in Black Lives Matter and Pride gear. If you want to see a low-res version of it, there’s a screenshot set as this episode’s art or you can see a low-res version on any of the aforementioned social media pages. Color in your page and send it back, and we’ll show it off on Instagram! 

BUT WAIT, THERE’S MORE. If we can get proof of at least FIFTY donations, I’ll release into this feed a special outtakes episode! This is material I’ve been holding back for when we can get paid subscriptions going in the future, but you can make it available for free, right now, just by helping vulnerable people in your community. Sounds like a pretty good deal.

Now, I know that money is tight for a lot of people right now, so if you can’t afford to give monetarily, I will accept proof of tangible action to reduce police and racial violence or increase access or rights for people who need it. Maybe you volunteered with Trans Lifeline or the Trevor Project, or helped organize a protest, drafted and shared letters for your local legislature...just keep in mind that it needs to be real, specific action, not just yelling at people on Facebook. 

When you send in your proof of either donations or action, please let us know if it’s okay to share what you’ve done and shout you out. I would like to do that to hopefully use peer pressure to our advantage here, but I also want to respect everyone’s privacy.

Black Trans Women are one of the most vulnerable marginalized groups in our society. They sit right at the intersection of racial, sexist, and LGBTQ+ prejudice, so that’s why we’re putting our focus on them. 

You can find a list of suggested organizations in the show notes, including a couple of great groups in Oregon, which is where this show is set. There’s also a link to more of Kathy’s amazing work. Kathy has a whole coloring book of LGBTQ icons with inspirational messages that’s available for purchase. It’s amazing.

Stay tuned for more entertainment soon, but in the meantime, be the person you always said you’d be in history class. Show up for people who need it. Now is the time, and you are the person. 

Or at least get yourself a super cute Sasquatch to color in. He’s got a big toothy smile and everything!

Alright, keep it up everyone. We’ll see you soon.

links from the show notes

National organizations:

Trans Lifeline - Peer support services and crisis intervention for the trans community, by the trans community

The Trevor Project - Crisis intervention and suicide prevention for LGBTQ+ youth

The Okra Project - Provides healthy, culturally-specific meals to Black Trans People

The Marsha P. Johnson Institute - Advocating for Black Trans people

Emergency Release Fund - Bail funds to keep Trans people out of jail

Transgender Law Center - Focuses on changes to law and policy

Lambda Legal - National Civil Rights organization for LGBTQ+ legal rights and advocacy

Trans Women of Color Collective - various advocacy for Trans Women of Color, including the Black Trans Health Initiative

Portland, OR organizations: 

Basic Rights Oregon - LGBTQ+ advocacy in Oregon, with a dedicated Racial Justice Program

Black Resilience Fund - Portland-based organization providing direct financial and food assistance to the Black community

Don't Shoot PDX - Provides legal clinics, resources, and support to the Black community in Portland

Art by Kathy Carlston, creator of Coloring OUTside the Lines with Inspirational LGBT People. 

  • Images of LGBTQ icons like Laverne Cox, Freddie Mercury, and Harvey Milk alongside inspirational quotes and affirmations.

  • Find more of Kathy’s work at http://www.kathycarlstonart.com/