Help for Inmates
Building a Better Future... Through a Stronger Foundation
Help break the cycle of recidivism
LGBT Programs
JAILS ARE A TRAUMATIZING AND OFTEN VERY DANGEROUS PLACE, ESPECIALLY FOR lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people, and anyone who is gender nonconforming. In a country that incarcerates more of its people than any other in the world, LGBT people are more likely to wind up behind bars, and also more likely to face abuse behind bars. Being LGBT in a US jail or prison often means daily humiliation, physical and sexual abuse, and fearing it will get worse if you complain. Many LGBT people are placed in solitary confinement for months or years just because of who they are. Many advocates across the country are working to change this. Today, there are new national standards, legal developments, and other new tools. Today there are many allies beyond the LGBT community who are combating mass incarceration and abuse behind bars.
According to the National Transgender Discrimination Survey, 16% of transgender adults have been in a prison or jail for some reason. This compares with 2.7% of all adults who have ever been in prison, and 10.2% of all adults who have ever been under any kind of criminal justice supervision, including probation. Transgender people, especially poor people and people of color, report facing disrespect, harassment, discriminatory arrests, and physical and sexual assault by police at very high rates.
While an estimated 4-8% of youth are LGBT. A major study of youth in juvenile detention found that as many as 13-15% are LGBT. Family rejection, homelessness, and hostility in the foster-care and other safety-net systems often serve to funnel LGBT youth into the juvenile justice system. Even though LGBT youth are often the targets of violence and abuse in schools, a 2010 study in the medical journal Pediatrics found that LGBT youth were up to three times more likely to experience harsh disciplinary actions in school than their non-LGBT counterparts.
The following are helpful links for your follow-up:
LGBT National Institute of Corrections Site
L-G-B-T Resources
BLACK AND PINK
614 Columbia Rd
Dorchester, MA 02125
Provides a free monthly newsletter of prisoner written material, hosts an online listing of pen pals, coordinates an art program, provides direct advocacy when possible, and offers religious and erotic materials upon request.
Gay Buddhist Fellowship
PMB 456
2215-R Market Street
San Francisco, CA 94114
Supports Buddhist practice in the gay men’s community. Monthly newsletter.
Human Rights Campaign
1640 Rhode Island Ave. N.W.
Washington, DC 20036-3278
202-628-4160
(800) 777-4723
Working for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender equal rights.
INTERNATIONAL FOUNDATION FOR GENDER EDUCATION
P.O. Box 540229
Waltham, MA 02454-0229
(781) 894-8340
(781) 899-2212
Resources, books to promote understanding and acceptance of all sexual orientations.
National Center for Transgender Equality
1325 Massachusetts Ave. NW, Suite 700 Washington, D.C. 20005
(202) 903-0112
Dedicated to advancing the equality of transgender people through advocacy, collaboration and empowerment.
Prisoner Correspondence Project
QPIRG Concordia
c/o Concordia University,
1455 de Maisonneuve O
Montreal, QC H3G 1M8
info@prisonercorrespondenceproject.com
www.prisonercorrespondenceproject.com
Resource program for lesbian/gay/bisexual/transgender inmates.
SINISTER WISDOM INC.
PO Box 3252
Berkeley CA 94703
Lesbian literary journal free to women in prisons and mental institutions.
Sylvia Rivera Law Project
147 W 24th St, 5th Floor
New York NY 10011
(212) 337-8550
Provides direct representation for low income transgender people and transgender people of color, including a “Prisoner Rights Project” that assists with the following areas:
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Name Changes
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Assistance Getting Trans-affirming health care
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Assistance with Safety Issues
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Advocacy for gender-affirming placement and conditions
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Re-Entry Assistance
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Fingerprinting and criminal history check
Transgender, Gender Variant & Intersex Justice Project (TGIJP)
342 9th Street, Suite 202B
San Francisco, CA 94103
(415) 252-1444
Offers advice and resources to transgender people. Also offers newsletter, resource guide and survival guide for transgendered prisoners.
TRANZMISSION PRISON BOOKS
P.O. Box 1874
Asheville, NC 28801
Offers free books and resources to LGBT inmates.