The Okra Project, the New York City-based grassroots collective that aims to combat food insecurity among Black transgender folks, launched two new mental health recovery funds for Black trans people Sunday. The move comes in the midst of the nationwide uprising for racial justice and follows the recent deaths of Tony McDade, the Tallahassee Black trans man who was fatally shot by police last week, and Nina Pop, the Black trans woman who was murdered in Missouri last month.
In response, The Okra Project has started the Nina Pop Mental Health Recovery Fund, which will raise money for Black trans women, and the Tony McDade Mental Health Recovery Fund, which will raise money for Black trans men. They’ve dedicated $15,000 to the two funds, and are asking community donors to match their commitment. The funds will pay for one-time therapy sessions with a licensed Black therapist for each applicant.
In a press release, the Okra Project says that those “who have been participating in the protests against state-sanctioned violence and/or are coping with the emotional stress of the public murders of Nina Pop, Tony McDade, and the epidemic of Trans people being murdered worldwide” are encouraged to apply via a Google Form. They also note those who are Black and identify “under the Transgender umbrella” should apply to whichever fund that they feel most aligns with their gender identity.
Those who want to support can do so by donating via PayPal (while specifying which fund they’d like to contribute to) or by donating a session with their own Black therapist.
“In the wake of the murders of Nina Pop, Tony McDade, and so many more Black Trans people, The Okra Project recognizes that Black Trans people are feeling the weight of our siblings being murdered while their murderers, whether it be the assailants or the police force that puts very little effort into finding their killers, walk free,” the organization writes.
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