Metro Weekly

Trans United Fund will provide emergency grant money to trans and nonbinary people of color

Microgrants are intended to assist individuals struggling to make ends meet during the ongoing pandemic

trans united fund
Trans United Fund – Photo: Instagram.

The Trans United Fund has launched a fund to support transgender and nonbinary people of color who are being adversely impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Showing Up for Our Communities Relief Fund will begin deploying financial resources to address the urgent health and economic needs of transgender people who are out of work due to stay-at-home orders and the closure of nonessential services.

“When there is not a pandemic happening, trans people face housing discrimination, job discrimination, and we often do not have access to healthcare,” Trans United Fund said in a statement.

“These conditions have only been exasperated since the start of this pandemic. We see racial disparities with who is dying from this virus, and even who is being tested. Our federal and state governments have not adequately addressed the needs of our communities in a way that ensures our survival before this pandemic, and we see no sign of them starting now.”

The fund will dole out microgrants to people and organizations in desperate need of capital on a short timeline.

Applications may be submitted on a rolling basis. Those eligible to apply include transgender, nonbinary and gender-nonconforming individuals.

Initially, funding will be given out to 50 individuals, each of whom will receive $100 as part of the first round of grants. More details on the second and third rounds of microgrants will be released in the coming weeks.

“Times are tough right now, and we want to ease the burden on our community in any way possible,” Trans United Fund said in an email to supporters. “This is an unprecedented time, and we have to start making unprecedented moves to sustain our community. We will come out on the other side of this, and we will do it together.”

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