Donate to Black trans man, KC Matthews.
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Title: Support a Black trans man with stable housing, transportation and more
Dear community,
We are writing as friends and loved ones of KC Matthews, a Black trans man in need of stable housing and mutual aid in Oakland, CA. KC is a beloved community member who was welcomed home from prison in 2018 and has worked to empower other currently and formerly incarcerated trans people while also trying to secure his own housing, employment and basic needs during re-entry. While KC has had some support, he has had to do much on his own and faces continuous discrimination and barriers due to transphobia, racism, classism and more.
KC has not had access to long-term/safe housing since his release in 2018 and this has impacted him in incredibly destabilizing ways. KC has had his car stolen twice in the last year and his neighborhood experiences ongoing gun violence and retaliation. Not only has his environment been a heavy source of stress but last year he was experiencing transphobia and violence from being outed in the workplace-- this eventually led to the loss of his job.
He has somehow managed to keep himself grounded throughout all of this and went on to find employment working the front desk at a shelter and now as a driver for UPS. He has been working diligently between both jobs, working 14 hour+ shifts often so he can save up and find safe, long-term housing.
On June 11, 2020 KC’s loved ones reported KC missing after not hearing from him for over a week and when trying to contact him, finding that his phone was cut off and social media had not been updated. KC was unable to contact his family and community for over 7 days because AT&T cut off his phone due to an outstanding balance. KC was in contact with AT&T about the need to spread out his payments because his work, like many of us, has been impacted by COVID-19. Without notice, AT&T cut his phone off during the same week he was scheduled to work back to back driving shifts from 6am-11pm. KC had to memorize new driving routes due to not having phone access and he also was unable to access wifi throughout this time so he had no way to contact his family. All of this led to a panic when KC’s sister and mother especially could not reach him, leading us all to organize around his search. Thanks to the efforts of our community, we were able to locate KC through one of the phones at his workplace-- however we had to immediately organize around this fundraiser after hearing about the events that led up to his disappearance and knowing KC’s long-term battle to secure safe housing and employment.
We are now raising $20,000 to support KC with moving costs, rent/housing stability for at least 12 months, transportation, and basic necessities. With the state of things in the world we know it has never been safe for Black transgender people and our community members are too often victims of transphobic violence, incarceration, police brutality, homelessness, racism and more. Its up to us to take care of eachother and to keep eachother safe. Please help us raise $25,000 to support KC and his long-term success!
KC cashapp: $kcm8
Dear community,
We are writing as friends and loved ones of KC Matthews, a Black trans man in need of stable housing and mutual aid in Oakland, CA. KC is a beloved community member who was welcomed home from prison in 2018 and has worked to empower other currently and formerly incarcerated trans people while also trying to secure his own housing, employment and basic needs during re-entry. While KC has had some support, he has had to do much on his own and faces continuous discrimination and barriers due to transphobia, racism, classism and more.
KC has not had access to long-term/safe housing since his release in 2018 and this has impacted him in incredibly destabilizing ways. KC has had his car stolen twice in the last year and his neighborhood experiences ongoing gun violence and retaliation. Not only has his environment been a heavy source of stress but last year he was experiencing transphobia and violence from being outed in the workplace-- this eventually led to the loss of his job.
He has somehow managed to keep himself grounded throughout all of this and went on to find employment working the front desk at a shelter and now as a driver for UPS. He has been working diligently between both jobs, working 14 hour+ shifts often so he can save up and find safe, long-term housing.
On June 11, 2020 KC’s loved ones reported KC missing after not hearing from him for over a week and when trying to contact him, finding that his phone was cut off and social media had not been updated. KC was unable to contact his family and community for over 7 days because AT&T cut off his phone due to an outstanding balance. KC was in contact with AT&T about the need to spread out his payments because his work, like many of us, has been impacted by COVID-19. Without notice, AT&T cut his phone off during the same week he was scheduled to work back to back driving shifts from 6am-11pm. KC had to memorize new driving routes due to not having phone access and he also was unable to access wifi throughout this time so he had no way to contact his family. All of this led to a panic when KC’s sister and mother especially could not reach him, leading us all to organize around his search. Thanks to the efforts of our community, we were able to locate KC through one of the phones at his workplace-- however we had to immediately organize around this fundraiser after hearing about the events that led up to his disappearance and knowing KC’s long-term battle to secure safe housing and employment.
We are now raising $20,000 to support KC with moving costs, rent/housing stability for at least 12 months, transportation, and basic necessities. With the state of things in the world we know it has never been safe for Black transgender people and our community members are too often victims of transphobic violence, incarceration, police brutality, homelessness, racism and more. Its up to us to take care of eachother and to keep eachother safe. Please help us raise $25,000 to support KC and his long-term success!
KC cashapp: $kcm8
Fundraising team: Black Transmen United (3)
Marquise Vilson
Organizer
Oakland, CA
Kc Matthews
Beneficiary
Wazi Maret
Team member
Omega Chuckii
Team member
