My mother, who worked at our county health department, opened my eyes to public health (and being nosey) at a very young age - television helped me fill in the gaps. So by the time HIV and AIDS rural outreach was coming to our health department I started learning more  about it on TV through programs like And The Band Played On and the Ryan White Story, but also through what I overheard in  the local health department break room (miss you girls). So I'll share with you some of the knowledge that I have about Ryan White. One, so that you'll understand a little bit about HIV and AIDS history in America, and two, in hopes to get you closer to the understanding that even in its best intended use, our criminal punishment system causes harm. Because it is just that - a punishment system. 

“When I think about the way I strive to show up in the work, I start from a place of knowledge strengthened by the work of my disabled ancestors, elders, and contemporaries who continue to help me grow in this space. Particularly to Mia Mingus, Leah Lakshmi Piepzna-Samarasinha (particularly their book Care Work), Robin Wall Kimmerer (especially Braiding Sweetgrass), Audre Lorde, Ndeye Oumou Sylla, Cole Arthur Riley, Marsha P. Johnson, Anna, and Tricia Hersey. I think about the ways my work is fundamentally different because of contemporaries like Mariame Kaba and Kelly Hayes, and because of community like Katrina and Nate Ward, AC Facci, Anna Langhtorn, Mauree Turner, CJ Garcia, aurelius francisco, Jo Beth Hamon, Sarah Adams, Al Phillips Shinn, Kendra Wilson-Clements, and so many others.” Come on in and read a lil more..

Sugarcoating this moment feels disingenuous and a little impossible. So as we look to 2SLGBTQ+ history month, we’re thinking about the ways that our history can so often inform our present. Whether it’s the reminders we’ve been here before, the knowledge gained from generations before us, or the examples of the way we’ve still found joy through all of the bullshit…knowing 2SLGBTQ+ history, our intersectional movement history, can be life-giving. Its time for our October 2025 Newsletter…enter if you dare…

May 2023 Monthly Update