Britt has been homeless on and off for 17 years in so-called Austin, TX. She is a 57-year-old Native Arapaho Two Spirit Elder, and has been working so hard, some weeks well over full time, to support the homeless community here since the pandemic started. She has helped get hundreds of meals to homeless encampments. Every single day Britt makes a difference in people's lives by distributing meals and other essential items such as hand sanitizer, cold water, and face masks.
In the last 4 months, Britt has gotten hundreds of meals out every single week to people living in homeless camps around Austin--through cooking, picking up supplies, delivering meals, and coordinating within a mutual aid network. She's made hundreds of masks by hand to give out, as well as many batches of hand sanitizer that have been distributed to camps as well. Britt has been staying in a vacant room at a local housing co-op for a few weeks and has just been offered membership there for the coming year. This is a huge opportunity for her to have stable housing for a whole year in a cooperative housing environment. The funds we are raising will go to rent for the whole year, her dues for the co-op, and hopefully extra towards day-to-day living expenses, considering Britt is an elder volunteering full time to feed and clothe as many homeless people as she possibly can.
If you are involved in mutual aid efforts in Austin, odds are you have benefited from Britt’s work in some way, so please contribute and share!
Personal challenge from Concordia Co-op:
If you are a white person / settler living in a housing co-op, consider donating $50 or more! (Many housing co-ops perpetuate whiteness, subcultures, and financial inaccessibility rather than building transformative mixed income, anti-racist, and intergenerational communities.)
If you are white and/or a settler, have stable housing, and have never moved money to Native organizations, communities, or individuals; consider donating $100 or more! (Your wealth and therefore access to stable housing was likely secured or aided through centuries of colonialism, theft, and exploitation.)
If you are supported by a trust fund, large inheritance, or high income - give $500 or more!
Everyone deserves dignified housing. Beyond that, Britt is a true joy to be around, and works tirelessly to support the survival of Austin’s unhoused residents. Please give as much as you’re able, and spread as widely as you can! Finish Pride month strong by supporting queer low-income BIPOC all year round!
