Supporting Black-led organizing long-term
“We had to start the work from where it was needed and possible, not from what fit into a grant proposal. This is where Solidaire’s support was key.” – Rose Berry
The Black LGBTQIA+ Migrant Project (BLMP) started organically to affirm and protect Black queer, trans and nonbinary folks. In a short amount of time, the organization expanded to include policy and organizing work through a network of over 200 members across the country. Our organization challenges and tears down the narrative that Black, queer, non-binary immigrants don’t fit in the U.S. and, instead, acknowledges that it is governmental systems and institutions – policing, healthcare, immigration and deportation systems – that don’t fit our work.
It’s up to us to tell real stories that expose the processes created to keep folks like us out. One example is our first national campaign to get Udoka, a Black gay man fleeing persecution, freed from detention. Not only was he unjustly detained after seeking asylum, but he was also was denied mental health support. We launched a national campaign to not only get him free, but provide additional support for his reentry, including a job and housing. There are not many organizations that do this.
This work is personal for me. I am a Black, queer, migrant woman who spent more than half of my life organizing for equity, gender and racial justice, as well as LGBTQ+ and migrant justice. When I was doing this work, the critical intersections — Black, migrant and queer/non-binary — was missing. We were ignoring indicators for forced migration and why people are migrating in the first place. The U.S. is known as the land of opportunity, but that’s not the whole story. Folks are fleeing to the U.S. because of their gender and sexuality, and those intersections are part of my own identity: I am a migrant who was born in Panama, and come from three generations of Honduran migrants, yet I have never found a space in organizing that spoke to all parts of me.
One thing that has been critical for BLMP is unrestricted funding. It’s difficult to get funding and recognition for a brand new organization while you’re still building your credibility and showing impact. We’re meeting our communities where they are and responding to the need, but funders are interested in long-term policy campaigns. A lot of folks we work with are undocumented and can’t engage or share their stories. We had to start the work from where it was needed and possible, not from what fit into a grant proposal. This is where Solidaire’s support was key. They were there from the beginning, supporting and recognizing the work that we were doing and trusting us and the needs of our communities. They acknowledged stories like Udoka’s, and that this is why the work must continue. Solidaire’s support has allowed us to grow our work and branch out.
Our work speaks for itself. My hope is that funders will be excited to tell others about what we’re doing and not wait for “unprecedented moments” to give unrestricted funding.
Rose Berry is a Steering Committee member and the research project lead for Black LGBTQIA+ Migrant Project, an independent organization, fiscally sponsored by the Transgender Law Center, that centers the power of Black LGBTQIA+ migrants to ensure the liberation of all Black people through community-building, political education, creating access to direct services, and organizing across borders.