Can you restore the childhood that has been stolen from them? We are in desperate need of hope, of hands that can reach out and lift us from this nightmare, so our children can live the life they deserve.
Santa Claus has always been a symbol of joy and gifts, visiting homes to spread happiness in the hearts of children. But in Gaza, his role has completely changed. In this image, he appears stunned and helpless, pulling his sleigh no longer filled with presents, but with the bodies of those who perished amidst the destruction.
Santa, who once brought hope, now stands in the heart of tragedy, witnessing a reality beyond imagination. There are no celebrations here, no lights, and no children's laughter. Only screams, tears, and rubble that tells stories of pain.
I am a father living in the midst of this scene. I live in constant fear for my little child who does not know the meaning of life. My infant son Mohammed suffers from an illness and also malnutrition.
@criptochecca@aristotels @komsomolka @neptunerings @riding-with-the-wild-hunt @heritageposts
@fancysmudges @brokenbackmountain @motoriginal @aleciosun @sericate @fluoresensitivearchived @khizuo @nesmamomen @transmutationdice @schoolhaterfoodlover-blog @timogsilangan @appsa @buttercuparry @sayruq @malcriaada @palestinegenocide @sar-soor @akajustmerry @annoyinglypsychicmilkshake @feluka-blog-blog @tortiefrancis @flower-tea-fairies @tsaricides @riding-with-the-wild-hunt @visenyasdragon @belleandsaintsebastian @ear-motif @kordeliiius @khangerinedreams @raelyn-dreams @troythecatfish @theropod @tamamita @4ft10tvlandfangirl @queerstudiesnatural @northgazaupdates2 @skatezophrenic @awetistic-things @camgirlpanopticon @baby-girl-aaron-dessner @nabulsi @sygoldenhair-blog @junglejim4322 @heritageposts @cagandante-communistoide @corvidaedream @dlxxv-vetted-donations @illuminated-runas @imjustheretotrytohelp @carusocarousel
@sar-soor @appsa @akajustmerry @annoyingloudmicrowavecultist @thatdiabolicalfeminist @sayruq @tortiefrancis @tsaricides @riding-with-the-wild-hunt @vivisectionmoth @belleandsaintsebastian @kordeliiius @brutaliakhoa @raelyn-dreams @troythecatfish @ot3 @the-bastard-king @pcktknife @4ft10tvlandfangirl @queerstudiesnatural @northgazaupdates2 @90-ghost @skatehani @awetistic-things @baby-girl-aaron-dessner @variantsofblue @thedigitalbard @socalgal @paper-mario-wiki @ibtisams @nabulsi @lesbianmaxevans @buttercupagere @malcriada @dykemarcille @paparoach @neptunerings @newporters @postanagramgenerator @alivehouse @meshugenist @mangocheesecakes @2spirit-0spoons @khangems @wizardarchetypes @gaza-evacuation-funds @rununcal @virovac @geosparks@7bitter @ot3 @amygdalae @ankle-beez @communistchameleon @komsomolka @neptunerings @riding-with-the-wild-hunt @heritageposts @watermotif @stuckinaprill @mavigator @lacecap @determinate-negation @deepspaceboytoy @paper-mario-wiki @kibumkim @chilewithcarnage @sayruq @turtletoria @emil @vampiricvenus @finalgirlabigailhobbs @sayruq @ghostofanonpast @akajustmerry
"Please, do not ignore my story. Your donation and sharing this message is a part of your humanity and support for us. Every help, no matter how small, makes a huge difference in my life and my children's lives. Be our voice, be the hope for those who have lost everything." 🇵🇸🍉🙏🏼
✅️Vetted by @gazavetters, my number verified on the list is ( #521 )✅️
In a corner of Gaza, my family and I are drowning in destruction, with the echoes of suffering surrounding us. I sat beside my modest tent, hastily erected after losing my home in the latest bombing. The faces of my family tell stories of patience and resilience, with lines of time etched upon them, as if they were records of unforgettable events. 🇵🇸⏳🍉
I once lived in a small home, filled with the laughter and voices of my children. Today, I have become a witness to the agony of displacement. The bombing forced me to flee with my children after a shell struck our home, leaving behind years of memories and simple belongings I never imagined would become unreachable. 🏚️💨
Every morning, I leave my tent and go to work, using a clay oven to provide food for my children. Meanwhile, my youngest son heads to the charity kitchens that offer aid, waiting for long hours under Gaza’s scorching sun. Despite the exhaustion that weighs down his frail body, he carries the food mixed with his tears and returns with a fake smile, hiding behind it the burdens of his struggles. 🍞🥀
At night, when everyone else is asleep, I remain seated at the entrance of my tent, gazing at the dark sky, reminiscing about days gone by… about my home that was once filled with warmth. Yet, I still find remnants of hope in my heart—a hope that one day peace will return, and my children and I will live in a new home, filled with joy. 🌙🏡✨
In moments of solitude, I find peace in prayer and supplication. I plead to God to protect Gaza and its people, to wipe away the dust of sorrow from our hearts. I always repeat🇵🇸🍉🌿
"We are here to remind the world that we are stronger than war, and we will rebuild our lives anew, no matter the cost!" 🙏
My friends, this is all that remains of my warm, safe, beautiful house, where we had many memories and where we used to gather as a happy family, but the occupation robbed us of the memories and the warm and safe shelter. When I saw the house, I became depressed and frustrated. Where will we go? Will we stay sleeping in the street? My heart is torn from sadness over what happened. I saw, my friend, you are reading my story. Put yourself in my position and imagine the extent of frustration and despair I am experiencing now. My heart is broken and torn. Help me, my friend, to donate so that we can build Construction is very expensive and I can barely provide food for my family. Help me save my family
✅️Vetted by @gazavetters, my number verified on the list is ( #402 )✅️
@gazavetters @ankle-beez @qazastra @cerastes @gaza @gazaboovintage @paleinthenight @freepeople @violentbisexuality @yiddishfisting @yeah-seems-legit @junkirat @jamesheathridge @mensweardog @zinjanthropusboisei @zaharsimiere @zipper-zip @hoedameron @hospital-forlost-souls @hospitalglam @fmlsdaily @hollywoodassistants @vjntage @bongjoonheaux @black-geek-supremacy @kfxck @cjk5camo-blog @jll-7 @hkkb @fnonc @vudoo-child
the following organizations accept donations via Venmo, PayPal or Cashapp:
Homeless Black Trans Women Fund: supports Black Trans women that live in Atlanta and are sex workers and/or homeless
Trans Justice Funding Project: supports grassroots trans justice groups run by and for trans people, focusing on organizing around racism, economic injustice, transmisogyny, ableism, immigration, and incarceration
Trans(forming): membership-based organization led by trans men, intersex, gender non-conforming people of color, to provide resources and all around transitional support
Black Trans Men Inc.: the first national nonprofit social advocacy organization with a specific focus on empowering Black Transgender men by addressing multi-layered issues of injustice faced at the intersections of racial, sexual orientation, and gender identities
Kween Culture: provides programming towards social and cultural empowerment of transgender women of color
Heaux History Project: a documentary series and archival project exploring Black and Brown erotic labor history and the fight for sex workers’ rights
Tournament Haus Fund: mutual aid fund for protesters and trans/non binary BIPOC in the ballroom scene in Portland/Tacoma/Seattle
Black Excellence Collective Transport for Black NYC LGBTQ+ Protesters: raising funds to provide safe transport for Black LGBTQ+ protesters (NYC)
F2L Relief Fund: provides commissary support (and legal representation & financial assistance) for incarcerated LGBTQ+ and Two-Spirit POC in NY state
Trans Sistas of Color Project Detroit: uplifts, impacts and influences the lives and welfare of transgender women of color in Detroit
Black Trans Protesters Emergency Fund organized by Black Trans Femme in the Arts Collective: supports Black trans protesters with resources like bail and medical care
Black Trans Travel Fund: a mutual aid project developed to provide Black transgender women with the financial resources to self-determine safer alternatives to travel, so they feel less likely to experience verbal harassment or physical harm
Reproductive Justice Access Collective (ReJAC): a New Orleans network that aims to share information, resources, ideas, and human power to create and implement projects in the community that operate within the reproductive justice framework
the following organizations can be donated to individually or all-together via this split donation form that will split your donation amount to equal parts:
Okra Project/Tony McDade and Nina Pop Mental Health Fund: provides Black Trans people with quality mental health & therapy and addresses food security in Black trans communities
For The Gworls: provides assistance to Black trans folks with travel to and from medical facilities, and co-pay assistance for prescriptions and (virtual) office visits
Third Wave Fund: an activist fund led by and for women of color, intersex, queer, and trans people under 35 years of age to resource the political power, well-being, and self determination of communities of color and low-income communities; rapid response grantmaking, multi-year unrestricted grants, and the Sex Worker Giving Circle
Unique Womens Coalition (Los Angeles, CA): supportive organization for and by transgender people of color, committed to fostering the next generation of black trans leadership through mentorship, scholarship, and community care engagement work
Black Trans Women Inc.: a national nonprofit organization committed to providing the trans-feminine community with programs and resources
SisTers/Brothers PGH (Pittsburgh, PA): A transgender drop-in space, resource provider and shelter transitioning program
Love Me Unlimited for Life: helps transgender community members reach their goals and fulfill their potential through advocacy and outreach activities
My Sistah’s House Memphis (Memphis, TN): designed to bring about social change within the Trans Community in Memphis by providing a safe meeting space and living spaces for those who are most vulnerable in the LGBTQ+ community
Black LGBTQIA Migrant Project: builds and centers the power of Black LGBTQIA+ migrants through community-building, political education, direct services, and organizing across borders; provides cash assistance to Black LGBTQ+ migrants and first generation people dealing with the impact of COVID-19
Taja’s Coalition at St. James Infirmary (San Francisco/Bay Area): navigating housing, medical services, legal services, and the workplace, as well as regularly training agencies
Marsha P. Johnson Institute: helps employ black trans people, build more strategic campaigns, launch winning initiatives, and interrupt the people who are standing in the way of more being possible in the world for black Trans people
Black & Pink Bail Fund: national prison abolitionist organization dedicated to dismantling the criminal punishment system and the harms caused to LGBTQ+ people and people living with HIV/AIDS who are affected by the system
Black Visions Collective (MN): healing and transformative justice principles and develops Minnesota’s emerging Black leadership, creating the conditions for long term success and transformation
Middle Tennessee Black and Indigenous Support Fund (Middle, TN): a community fund for Black and Indigenous queer and trans folks to foster wealth redistribution in its larger community, direct the funds to Black and Indigenous community members, and build the leadership of Black and Indigenous community members
SNaPCo (Atlanta, GA): a Black, trans-led collaborative to restore an Atlanta where every person has the opportunity to grow and thrive without facing unfair barriers, especially from the criminal legal system
Brave Space Alliance (Chicago, IL): created to fill a gap in the organizing of and services to trans and gender-nonconforming people on the South and West Sides of Chicago
House of GG: a nonprofit, founded trans activist Miss Major Griffin-Gracy, that is raising money to build a permanent home for Transgender people and be part of a growing network of Southern trans people who are working for social justice
TGI Justice Project: a group of transgender, gender variant and intersex people inside and outside of prisons, jails and detention centers challenging and ending human rights abuses committed against TGI people in California prisons, jails, detention centers
Trans Women of Color Collective: creates revolutionary change by uplifting the narratives, leadership, and lived experience of trans people of color
Youth Breakout (New Orleans, LA): seeks to end the criminalization LGBTQ youth to build a safer and more just New Orleans, organizing with youth ages 13-25 who are directly impacted by the criminal justice system
Translash: a trans-led project uses the power of individual stories to help save trans lives, shifting the cultural understanding of what it means to be transgender, especially during a time of social backlash, to foster inclusion and decrease anti-trans hostility
TRANScending Barriers: empowers the transgender and gender non-conforming community in Georgia through community organizing with leadership building, advocacy, and direct services
My Sistah’s House: a trans-led nonprofit providing first hand experience and field research to create a one-stop shop for finding doctors, social groups and safe spaces for the trans community, providing emergency shelter, access to sexual health services, and social services
TAKE Birmingham: focuses on discrimination in the workplace, housing advocacy, support for sex workers, providing trans-friendly services, and working to alleviate the many other barriers that TWOC face
Dem Bois: provides charitable economical aid for female to male, FTM, trans-masculine identified person(s) of color ages 21 years old and older for them to obtain chest reconstruction surgery, and or genital reassignment surgery
G.L.I.T.S: approaches the health and rights crises faced by transgender sex workers
Emergency Release Fund (NYC): aims to ensure that no trans person at risk in New York City jails remains in detention before trial; pays cash bails
HEARD: Helping Educate to Advance the Rights of Deaf Communities: supports deaf, hard of hearing, deafblind, deafdisabled, and disabled people at every stage of the criminal legal system process, up to and including during and after incarceration
Black Trans Advocacy Coalition COVID-19 Community Response Grant: works daily to end discrimination and inequities faced in health, employment, housing and education to improve the lived experience of transgender people
Princess Janae Place: provides referrals to housing for chronically homeless LGBTQ adults in the New York Tri-state area, with direct emphasis on Trans/GNC people of color
The Transgender District: aims to stabilize and economically empower the transgender community through ownership of homes, businesses, historic and cultural sites, and safe community spaces
Assata’s Daughters (Chicago, IL): Black woman-led; organizes young Black people in Chicago by providing them with political education, leadership development, mentorship, and revolutionary services
Collective Action for Safe Spaces: A grassroots organization that uses comprehensive, community-based solutions through an intersectional lens to eliminate public gendered harassment and assault in the DC area.
The Knights and Orchids Society (TKO) work for justice and equality through group economics, education, leadership development, and organizing cultural work throughout rural areas in Alabama
The Outlaw Project (Phoenix, AZ): prioritizes the leadership of people of color, transgender women, gender non-binary and migrants for sex worker rights
WeCare TN (Memphis, TN): Supports trans women of color
Community Ele'te (Richmond, VA): provides safe sex awareness and education, linkage to resources, emergency housing assistance
TAJA’s Coalition (San Francisco, CA): ending violence against Black Trans women and Trans women of color
Black Trans Task Force: intersectional, multi-generational project of community building, research, and political action addressing the crisis of violence against Black Trans people in the Seattle-Tacoma area
The Transgender District: stabilize and economically empower the transgender community through ownership of homes, businesses, historic and cultural sites, and safe community spaces
Black Trans Media (Brooklyn, NY): #blacktranseverything storytellers, organizers, poets, healers, filmmakers, facilitators that confront racism and transphobia
Garden of Peace, Inc. (Pittsburgh, PA): for black trans & queer youth, elevates and empowers the narratives and lived experiences of black youth and their caretakers, guides revolutionary spaces of healing and truth through art, education, and mentorship
House of Pentacles (Durham, NC): Film Training Program and Production House designed to launch Black trans youth into the film industry and tell stories woven at the intersection of being Black and Trans
Minnesota Transgender Health Coalition (Minneapolis, MN): committed to improving health care access and the quality of health care received by trans and gender non-conforming people through education, resources, and advocacy
RARE Productions (Minneapolis, MN): arts and entertainment media production company for LGBTQ people of color that promotes, produces, and co-creates opportunities and events utilizing innovative artistic methods and strategies
Baltimore Safe Haven (Baltimore, MD): providing opportunities for a higher quality of life for transgender people in Baltimore
Transgender Emergency Fund of Massachusetts: recently helped organize a Trans Resistance Vigil and March through Boston, in place of the Boston Pride Parade that was cancelled due to COVID-19
Semillas: in Puerto Rico, the trans, gender non-conforming and queer communities are facing many obstacles to survival
Street Youth Rise Up: change the way Chicago sees and treats its homeless and street based youth who do what they have to do to survive
It’s so weird how hyperfixations can take over your whole life for about a month and you’re properly obsessed with that one thing until the next month comes around. Then suddenly you’re a whole new person
As a history student going into library science, people way under hype how crazy book banning is
Multiple lists of books already banned in schools/libraries or ones that likely will be:
Banned Books Week 2024: 100 of the Most Challenged Books
Banned Books: Top 100
Banned Book List
Colorado Banned Book List
The Complete List of Banned & Challenged Books by State
Banned Books from the University of Pennsylvia Online Books Page
Top 10 Most Challenged Books in 2023
PEN America Index Of School Book Bans – 2023-2024
Challenged and Banned Books
Places to order books other than Amazon:
Internet Archive (free)
Libby (free with library card)
Thrift Books
Book Outlet
BookBub
Abe Books
Half Price Books
Barnes & Noble
Better World Books
PangoBooks
Book Finder
Goodwillbooks
Alibris
Places to support that fight against book banning:
American Library Association
Unite Against Banned Books
National Coalition Against Censorship
PEN America
There’s a reason politicians fight so hard to limit knowledge and it should scare you.
Some recs below based on reviews I’ve seen
I Know Why the Caged Bird Sing by Maya Angelou
The House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros
This Book is Gay by Juno Dawson
Melissa by Alex Gino
Looking for Alaska by John Green
The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini
All Boys Aren't Blue by George Matthew Johnson
Gender Queer by Maia Kobabe
All American Boys by Jason Reynolds
And Tango Makes Three by Justin Richardson
Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe by Benjamin Alire Sáenz
The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas
The Color Purple by Alice Walker
Flamer by Mike Curato
Let's Talk About It: The Teen's Guide to Sex, Relationships, and Being a Human by Erika Moen and Matthew Nolan
Lawn Boy by Jonathan Evison
This Day in June by Gayle E. Pitman
Me and Earl and the Dying Girl by Jesse Andrews
Stamped: Racism, Antiracism, and You by Ibram X. Kendi and Jason Reynolds
Sex is a Funny Word by Cory Silverberg
Prince & Knight by Daniel Haack
The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood
Drama by Raina Telgemeier
This One Summer by Mariko Tamaki
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon
I Am Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter by Erika L. Sanchez
Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry by Mildred D. Taylor
The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie
Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi
Beloved by Toni Morrison
a whole bunch of gazan mutual aid projects and nonprofits. if the decision of which individual fundraiser to give to feels too daunting, or if you just want to help as many people as possible in one go, these are great initiatives to support.
care for gaza - focuses on providing food and essential supplies. donate here or here.
connecting humanity - securing internet access via donations of virtual sim cards (esims). if you can't afford a whole plan yourself, crips for esims is a communal pool that will use your donation to purchase and maintain esims
gaza soup kitchen - provides food, medical care, and classes for children. also has a gofundme
glia gaza medical support initiative - provides medical care through field clinics and tents at hospitals. donations can also be sent through their website.
ele elna elak - provides clean water, food, clothing, and shelter. they also have a gofundme
life for gaza - raising money for the gaza municipality to repair water and waste management infrastructure
taawon - partners with local civil organizations to provide food, water, medical care, shelter, and basic supplies
the sameer project - running various initiatives providing tents, medical care, and necessities. they have their own encampment project focused on sheltering families with children, sick and disabled members, or members in need of perinatal care
islamic relief worldwide's gaza emergency appeal - provides food, water, hygiene kits, medical supplies, and psychological support
baitulmaal - provides a variety of necessities, including food, water, shelter, and medical supplies
gaza mutual aid fund - distributes food, hygiene products, water, and other essential supplies, including financial support. run by @/el-shab-hussein's amazing friend Mona. updates can be found on her instagram.
hygiene kits for gaza - provides hygiene supplies including menstrual products, wipes, and toothbrushes/toothpaste
anera - provides a variety of necessities, including food, water, hygiene supplies, medicine, blankets and mattresses, and psychological care
palestine children's relief fund - provides supplies and support with a focus on children. also has an initiative for lebanon
dahnoun mutual aid - provides water, food, tents, baby supplies, financial support, and other necessities. updates can be found through their instagram
certainly this is not an exhaustive list, so please feel free to add on other projects or organizations that i didn't include. and as always, please take the time to donate if you can and share. it truly makes all the difference.
A child is screaming,
A mother is saying goodbye,
A home is turned to rubble,
And the world stays silent.
I’m from Gaza, writing this under bombs.
Jabalia Rehabilitation Society is the only institution in the northern Gaza Strip that provides services to a large group of people with disabilities, especially those with hearing disabilities. It is considered a center for health, psychological and educational support in Jabalia camp that is no less important than government institutions. It is considered one of the contributing and supporting institutions alongside the government health and educational centers in the camp and shares the burden and community services with those centers.
Since the beginning of the war on Gaza on October 7, the institution has been a center for sheltering thousands of displaced civilians, especially those with disabilities and their families who benefit from the institution's services. However, after the Israeli occupation forces entered Jabalia camp for the second time in the war on May 12, they destroyed and burned all the buildings and facilities of the association after it had been a shelter for thousands of displaced people.
@fancysmudges @brokenbackmountain @just-browsing1222 @mothblossoms @aleciosun @serica-e @fluoresensitive @katherineonline @khizuo @lesbiandardevil @transmutationisms @schoolhater @timogsilangan @appsa @buttercuparry @sayruq @malcriada @palestinegenocide @sar-soor @akajustmerry @annoyingloudmicrowavecultist @feluka @tortiefrancis @flower-tea-fairies @tsaricides @riding-with-the-wild-hunt @visenyasdragon @belleandsaintsebastian @ear-motif @kordeliiius @brutaliakhoa @raelyn-dreams @troythecatfish @theropoda @tamarrud @4ft10tvlandfangirl @queerstudiesnatural @northgazaupdates2 @skatezophrenic @awetistic-things @baby-girl-aaron-dessner @nabulsi