Support these community organizations this Giving Tuesday

Virginia's criminal legal system is inherently flawed and working exactly as designed - to keep people, particularly people of color, trapped within it. Our system criminalizes mental health issues, substance use disorder, and normal adolescent behavior, funneling kids into the school-to-prison pipeline. It locks people up far too much for far too long and focuses on punishing people instead of rehabilitating them to become productive members of their communities upon release. It makes it nearly impossible to reenter society once someone has served their time, erecting barrier after barrier to keep people turning to whatever means they can to survive. It keeps families apart and productive members of society from their communities, and won't send people home, even when they've rehabilitated. 

The following organizations work to address these issues by providing support to families, helping people who are formerly incarerated reenter society, advocating on local and state levels for better policy, and educating the public about who people behind bars really are. If you care about reforming our broken criminal legal system, please consider giving to the organizations listed below:

Nolef Turns

Nolef Turns was established to build a network of resources for individuals with court and justice involvement to thrive post-conviction. The organization works to fight against our unjust judicial system and to help end mass incarceration by ensuring that people entrenched in our criminal legal system receive the support they need to become free from it.

Learn more about Nolef Turns.

Make a gift to Nolef Turns.

RISE for Youth

RISE for Youth is a nonpartisan organization committed to dismantling the youth prison model and ensuring every space that impacts a young person’s life encourages growth and success. RISE promotes the creation of healthy communities and community-based alternatives to youth incarceration. Its work centers youths and their communities, who together, challenge racial and social injustice in Virginia.

Learn more about RISE for Youth.

Make a gift to RISE for Youth.

The Humanization Project

The Humanization Project works to humanize the lives of people behind bars in the eyes of the world, thus encouraging criminal justice reform guided by public understanding and compassion. The Humanization Project accomplishes this by sharing direct personal stories, educational outreach, academic research, and creative writing to remind people outside of the system that the people inside of it are just that - people. 

Learn more about the Humanization Project.

Make a gift to the Humanization Project.

RIHD - Resource Information Help for the Disadvantaged and Disenfranchised

RIHD educates and empowers Virginia families and communities on the negative impact of a racially-disparate system on mass incarceration and provides educational outreach to reduce the level of societal disenfranchisement of people with a criminal record. This organization helps ordinary Virginians to understand and navigate the criminal justice system and bring about necessary reforms.

Learn more about RIHD.

Make a gift to RIHD.

Bridging the Gap in Virginia

Bridging the Gap in Virginia aims to empower individuals, families, and communities by addressing the barriers and issues that hinder the effective transition into mainstream society following incarceration or addiction recovery. The organization provides resources for employment assistance, safe housing, structured recovery aftercare, educational opportunities, and green workforce development. The goal of Bridging the Gap is to create the opportunity for all participants to obtain and maintain the skills necessary to achieve self-sufficiency and to maintain contact beyond its programs to track successes and guarantee that participants receive full support wherever they may be.

Learn more about Bridging the Gap in Virginia.

Make a gift to Bridging the Gap in Virginia.

Abortion remains legal in Virginia, but our Commonwealth is just one vote away from banning abortion. Our lawmakers are currently working to introduce 15-week and total abortion bans while also trying to rollback progress that tore down barriers to abortion access. On top of this precarious position, access to abortion even when it is legal cannot always be guaranteed. Abortion services can be expensive, difficult to find and find time for, and might involve travel to obtain. People who are seeking abortion care may need childcare, transporation, or funding to be able to get the services they need.

That's where abortion funds come in. Abortion funds provide people who want to end a pregnancy with support throughout the process of seeking and getting an abortion. They arrange rides and lodging, supply funding, provide childcare, give aftercare to people who have had abortions, and help guide people before, during, and after their abortion. If you care about ensuring that someone who wants an abortion can get one, consider donating to these organizations doing essential work to make that reality. 

Blue Ridge Abortion Fund

The Blue Ridge Abortion Fund provides community members with financial support, transportation, and lodging assistance for abortions. Through education and community outreach, they reduce stigma and increase awareness. The Blue Ridge Abortion Fund has existed for 30 years, working to make access a reality for folks who need abortion care. Headquartered in Central Virginia, Blue Ridge Abortion Fund has been serving individuals who need help paying for abortion care since 1989. Funding abortion is an act of radical care that affirms the belief that all community members should have the agency and the resources to make their own decisions about their bodies.

Learn more about Blue Ridge Abortion Fund.

Make a gift to Blue Ridge Abortion Fund. 

New River Abortion Access Fund

New River Abortion Access Fund builds power and provides direct financial and practical support for abortion care in Southwest Virginia and Appalachia, while simultaneously working to dismantle the interconnected systems of oppression that create a need for abortion funding in the first place. They are dedicated to ensuring that all pregnant people have access to affordable, compassionate abortion care regardless of income level, race, gender, location, ability, or immigration status. Without access to funding, many people do not have a real choice.

Learn more about the New River Abortion Access Fund.

Make a gift to the New River Abortion Access Fund.

The Richmond Reproductive Freedom Project

The Richmond Reproductive Freedom Project (RRFP) seeks to further Reproductive Justice by providing practical and financial support for abortion services in Virginia and surrounding communities. RRFP strives to be a resource to the community by engaging in grassroots advocacy for the full spectrum of reproductive rights. The Richmond Reproductive Freedom Project supports access to a range of reproductive choices. Clients’ decisions when or whether to become parents are equally supported. RRFP’s mission lends specific focus to assisting people facing financial and institutionalized barriers to abortion services.

Learn more about Richmond Reproductive Freedom Project.

Make a gift to Richmond Reproductive Freedom Project.

Hampton Roads Reproductive Justice League

The Hampton Roads Reproductive Justice League works to remove financial and logistical barriers to abortion access and reproductive healthcare by organizing at the intersections of racial, economic, and reproductive justice . Funding abortion is an act of radical care that affirms the belief that all community members should have the agency and the resources to make their own decisions about their bodies.

Learn more about Hampton Roads Reproductive Justice League.

Make a gift to Hampton Roads Reproductive Justice League.

2022 saw record numbers of attacks against LGBTQ+ people, particularly students. These attacks sieged our schools and were supported by our leaders, making headlines and leading to unprecedented public outcry. School boards across Virginia refused to implement the Virginia Department of Education 2021 model policies on the treatment of trans & nonbinary students. Then, the Youngkin adminstration proposed new, harmful model policies to replace them. In the legislature, lawmakers proposed sports team bans for trans athletes and a bill to censor LGBTQ+ history and books from classrooms. We've watched school boards work to ban more books, ban trans students from locker rooms and bathrooms, silence dissent from LGBTQ+ students and allies, and keep LGBTQ+ symbols out of classrooms. Every day, LGBTQ+ students face feeling unsafe, unwelcome, and discriminated against at school. If you care about protecting trans kids and want them to thrive at school, consider donating to these organizations:

Pride Liberation Project

The Pride Liberation Project is the only student-led organization advocating for LGBTQIA+ rights in Virginia. They are entirely led by high school students, and work to create empowering schools and communities for all LGBTQIA+ students in Fairfax County and Virginia. 

Learn more about Pride Liberation Project. 

Make a gift to Pride Liberation Project.

Equality Virginia

Equality Virginia (EV) is an organization that understands that LGBTQ Virginians, from youth to seniors, continue to experience violence, discrimination, and disparities, particularly transgender people and people of color. The group works to advance equal rights for LGBTQ Virginians through public policy and advocacy.

Learn more about Equality Virginia.

Make a gift to Equality Virginia. 

He She Ze and We 

He She Ze and We serves families with transgender loved ones through support, education and advocacy. They offer the opportunity to gather information and resources, meet and listen to the stories of others and figure out how to be truly supportive, together, in a safe, confidential, and non-judgemental space.

Learn more about He She Ze and We.

Make a gift to He She Ze and We. 

Side by Side Virginia

Founded to support LGBTQ youth in Richmond, Virginia, Side by Side has grown into a national leader in working with LGBTQ+ youth on a broad range of challenges and opportunities in their lives. For over 25 years, Side by Side has worked with LGBTQ+ youth to meet their needs and support their dreams. 

Learn more about Side by Side Virginia. 

Make a gift to Side by Side Virginia.