Mission
"Familia: Trans Queer Liberation Movement works at local and national levels to achieve the collective liberation of trans, queer, and gender nonconforming Latinxs through building community, organizing, advocacy, and education."
FTQLM seeks to build a cultural and political home for LGBTQ people of color while trying to raise awareness of the intersections of LGBTQ people for the purposes of queer and racial justice. The organizations also seeks to raise awareness of the role that the state plays in the violence that is committed against people of color, LGBTQ folks, and the undocumented community.
Vision
"We are committed to the collective liberation of trans, queer, and gender nonconforming Latinxs to build power and (re)imagine our communities free from oppression. We seek to abolish the systems that marginalize, criminalize, imprison, and kill our people. We are building on the legacy of racial justice and liberation movements."
FTQLM is committed to uplifting the voices and experiences of LGBTQ people of color by complicating the conversations around immigration and state violence in immigration and racial justice movements.
History
FTQLM has been around for over 5 years. It came about from seeing the need for LGBTQ voices and representation in the immigration movement and in the struggle for racial justice. It has purposefully sought to complicate the conversation around immigration, such as the "good" versus "bad" immigrant, and by raising awareness of how the LGBTQ community is especially impacted by the criminalization of undocumented people.
The Organization
FTQLM has 3 paid staff in Los Angeles, while the rest of the organization consist of interns and volunteers.
Funding & Resources
95% of the funding FTQLM receives is from foundations, while the rest comes from individual donations from people. It has been hard to find donors largely as a result of the direct actions the group has committed itself to over the last couple of years.
FTQLM successfully closed down an immigration detention center a few years back in Santa Ana, CA, mainly through direct action and coalition building with other grassroots community groups (see ABC7 news report below). The organization has also been critical of previous movements and political leaders, allowing the opening of space for the voices of LGBTQ undocumented people, and LGBTQ people of color targeted by police violence. Jennicet gained nationwide attention when she openly criticized Barack Obama's policy of detaining LGBTQ undocumented immigrants in detention centers.
Short-Term Goals
FTQLM continues its commitment to direct actions around the country as a way to raise awareness LGBTQ issues. The organization seeks to grow its resources, funding and staff. It is currently working on #FamiliaontheRoad2018, a national tour to introduce itself and their work to local communities around the country.
Long-Term Goals
Grow the organization nationwide, while also establishing other chapters in more cities to make it more visible and active. FTQLM would ultimately like to abolish ICE and BP. The organization is thinking about creating a "youth arm" as a way to be more intentional in its outreach and inclusion of LGBTQ youth.
Facebook/twitter:
@familiatqlm
E-mail:
info@familiatqlm.org
Address:
634 S Spring St #1100
Los Angeles, CA 90014