As 2019 Pride month comes to a close, Vitalyst is marking the beginning of a new chapter: affirming our commitment of support for local transgender communities by formally signing the Grantmakers United for Trans Communities (GUTC) pledge.

 

More than one million trans people live in the United States today, facing staggering levels of daily harassment, discrimination and bias that manifest as poor health, as documented by the National Center for Transgender Equality’s in-depth research. Trans people are four times more likely to have an annual household income of less than $10,000, and twice as likely to experience unemployment. 78 percent report harassment at school, 90 percent report harassment or discrimination at work.

It is essential that philanthropies and those invested in community well-being take on the challenge of ensuring trans people are given every opportunity to lead a healthy life. According to GUTC, funding for transgender communities in the United States has increased four-fold in the last five years but remains limited. For every $100 awarded by U.S. foundations currently, only three cents benefit trans communities.

With this pledge, Vitalyst is committing itself as an organization to a multi-step process, starting with ourselves. Vitalyst staff will participate in trainings and professional development opportunities to enhance support for trans community health and well-being. Staff already attended the May 2019 Trans Summit hosted by the Arizona Community Foundation, and will join our fellow GUTC partners at an upcoming Funder Forum featuring insights and tools to help us be more trans-inclusive in all of our practices.

We will apply these resources to fulfill the pledge’s second tenant: improving recruitment and retention of trans and gender-nonconforming staff. We will revise human resources policies, benefits, hiring and advancement policies and practices, and provide trans-inclusive training to new and existing staff.

All of this will help us in our process of increasing our investment in the health and well-being of trans communities. We pledge to ensure that our request for grant proposals are extended to trans organizations that align with Vitalyst’s commitment to place-based health solutions. We will help address health issues faced by transgender people in our community, and foster a culture of connectedness and inclusivity. Furthermore, we are working hard to make our grant process more streamlined and accessible in order to eliminate as many barriers as possible for those who wish to apply.

Vitalyst embraces the truth that communities have the highest potential for health and thriving when they are deeply attentive to improving the situations of those who currently face the greatest challenges. To see this truth realized, Vitalyst is grateful to join Grantmakers United for Trans Communities. We are excited to take the next steps of a journey that will one day lead all communities to a place of health, happiness, and acceptance.

For more information on Vitalyst’s commitment to LGBTQ communities, please contact David Martinez III, Director of Capacity Building and Community Engagement, at dmartinez@vitalysthealth.org.