The Trans Youth Support Network, founded in 2004 after a series of acts of violence against young transwomen of color, announced on Tuesday that it will close at the end of the month.
In an email to community members, TYSN’s youth leaders said that “we don’t have the resources that we need to sustain our organization.” The organization stated that turnover in staff and board, as well as lack of leadership development for youth leaders, contributed to the decision to close.
The email ended:
We celebrate TYSN for being a beacon and a new model for young trans people, and we stand fiercely behind the work we have done. Since our transition last summer we accomplished many things together! We wrapped up our strategic planning with an amazing new friend and mentor. We ran a second cohort of Leadership Academy where 5 new faces bulldozed through 26 intense weeks of leadership development. We worked hard on trying to get more funding. And we never gave up! We believe that to achieve safety, community, leadership and liberation for trans youth of color, we need to work against racism, adultism, misogyny and violence. In many of our hearts and bodies, this is common sense. In the world we live in, it’s a revolutionary message. Please continue to carry this message in your hearts — we always will.
TYSN worked “to address the root cause of injustice and oppression that queer, trans and gender non-conforming youth and youth of color face.” TYSN provided support for trans youth in education, employment, and help with transition such as finding and updating government documents. TYSN was an organizing force supporting Cece McDonald, a young, black transwoman who was attacked in South Minneapolis, and charged and sentenced in the killing of her attacker. In 2014, the organization became entirely youth led and served as a safe space for trans youth.
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