#community resources usa

[canary-prince]

Ways For US-Americans To Help If You're Abstaining From Voting

Can't vote on moral grounds, but still raring to do something? Stuck in America and unsure of how to meaningfully serve your community? Here are some ideas that I, a social worker serving house-bound citizens, can share out of personal experience. Feel free to add other ideas or links. We are not powerless.

Volunteer (these are just examples/sources of info)

Planned Parenthood needs volunteers for nearly every non-medical department

See if your state has a volunteer stewardship program, where you can help weed out invasive plant species and defend your natural ecosystem

If you have medical skills, become a street medic

Contribute to the preservation of Queer History

Put your labor towards the upkeep or repair of properties in Indigenous communities

Adult literacy is not great right now, and we're harder to lie to if we're literate; volunteer to help your neighbors who were failed by the school system

Resources to help the unhoused constantly need volunteer counselors, cooks, and someone to sort donations

The sick and elderly are very under-served, particularly if they're broke, so reach out to a local hospice to see what skills they need

Give (if you can't physically volunteer but have money to spare)

Donate to an abortion fund; this one is for Native peoples specifically

Donate to a book gifting program or book mobile; this link is for Dolly Parton's Imagination Library

Donate to preserve the histories of communities of color; this fund is specifically for preserving African American historical sites

Donate to protect the natural environment

Donate to help free those caged in prisons; this link is for the Innocence Project, which aims to challenge wrongful convictions

The arts are for everyone, but wealth gaps interfere; this fund is for art initiatives that contribute to community building, including increasing accessibility

Learn (resources that many communities have but aren't widely educated on)

Community Action Agencies: these are non-profits and private companies that act in service of their communities' human rights and quality of life. Many have utility funds, run food banks, manage emergency shelters, provide education and job skills opportunities, and participate in social activism.

Area Agencies on Aging: Non-profits that serve elders (and non-elderly disabled citizens) in a designated service area. They primarily offer services to prolong independent living (free or low cost in home care, meals on wheels, home safety modifications, and Medicare guidance) or help with transition into assisted living.

Habitat For Humanity: They aren't just in disaster zones or on foreign soil; they have local US chapters that provide critical repairs to families in need. They repair roofs, address barriers to access, and perform electric and plumbing work.

Durable Medical Equipment Loan Closets: Communal sources of vital medical equipment including wheelchairs, walkers, canes, hospital beds, shower chairs, and more. May be able to provide incontinence supplies or diabetes supplies. Rarely but sometimes provide oxygen.

Non Emergency Medical Transportation/Alternatives to Mass Transit: Transportation for elderly, disabled, cognitively impaired, and low income citizens to help them reach medical providers, dental care, physical therapy, and eye exam appointments. Can also provide transit to shopping centers, the grocery store, religious events, cultural events, and polling stations. Offer door to door services for the housebound. IF YOU HAVE MEDICAID, YOU SHOULD NOT EVER BE PAYING FOR THIS. MEDICAID IS OBLIGATED TO MAKE SURE YOU REACH ANY AND ALL MEDICAL APPOINTMENTS.

Legal Aid Clinics: Sources of pro-bono or sliding scale legal advice and representation.

[buk0wskis]

with the results of the election, i beg you: please, please keep living. the greatest form of protest is to live. there are people who love you and want you to thrive; stay close to those people. your life is more important than those in power. existence is not a crime. you are beautiful, and the world is more beautiful with you in it. you are so incredibly strong, and we are proud of you for being here.

there are resources available for those who need them. below are just a few; there are so, so many more. please reach out to someone if you need any help. there are people that want and are willing to fight for you.

[gardening-guy]

resources i compiled the morning of seeing the election results.

stay as safe as you can, take care of yourself, and take care of each other.

we will get through this.

i'm scared, but i'm by your side.

we will survive.

[orchidbutch]

USA Progressive Faith Communities

If you have ever thought about finding a progressive faith community, now is a great time! I know many people are afraid and grieving in light of the US election, as well as preparing to take action, and this includes people of faith. Even if church or faith isn't your jam, it's a good idea to be aware of what's in your area & identify potential allies for positive change.

First, I'll highlight Unitarian Universalism (note the UUA website's social justice tab), mostly because they don't have a creed or require belief in a god or the afterlife. Instead, they are more geared towards community, guided by their seven principles and seven values centered on love.

They've got a strong history of social justice work, and depending on state, some even have state-wide social justice ministries (in the South: FL, TX, SC, GA.) Congregations may vary and can skew white and older, but there tends to be a commitment to racial justice, LGBTQIA rights, and reproductive justice.

Other UU links:

Side with Love (advocacy)

Pink Haven (resource for trans relocation and more)

Church of the Wider Fellowship - if you don't have UUs in your area or cannot leave your home, this is an option!

If you're a Christian or only have Christian churches in your area, here's some to look for:

UCC, United Church of Christ (link for finding affirming LGBTQ+ affirming UCC congregations)

Episcopal church (Human Rights and Peacebuilding page)

United Methodist (note: they had a schism over LGBTQ+ rights, see also their social justice page.)

PCUSA Presbyterians (Denomination Website, note that the "How We Serve + Advocacy & Social Justice" goes to Presbyterian Mission Agency page)

ECLA for Lutherans (link to their Faith and Society page)

MCC - Metrocrest community church, literally founded by a gay man! (Visitor Page, what we believe)

I'd recommend doing a quick google search in your area, if you see one of the above, check their website & FB page. This should give you a taste of what they're like. If you don't feel comfortable walking in on the day of a service, check to see if they stream online or have past sermons on their website. Emailing them is also an option if you're not sure what their stances are on social justice issues.

This is by no means an exhaustive list! I am more familiar with LGBTQIA-affirming churches, which both tend to be white where I am. Please add additional resources you know of or tips for finding a social justice oriented faith community of any kind.

Tagging some people who might have resources or know people who do:

@and-her-saints @our-queer-experience @hillbillyoracle @queerprayers @queerorthodoxy

[creed-of-cats]

The amount of doomerism I've heard from fellow usamericn zoomers/millennials around me is starting to drive me fucking insane.

"We're all gonna die, it's hopeless, it's not worth doing anything. This is our penance as human beings/[insert other guilty identity]"

You know who you guys fucking sound like? Fucking Evangelicals.

Yeah it's fucking scary and big, I'm not trying to say it isn't. But what the fuck is your plan??? Sitting down and dying?? Are you really telling me that this world is not worth you even fucking trying?? That you're just gonna party it out until your miscellaneous end game apocalypse arrives?

This isn't the rapture. The apocalypse is a false concept. People have been living through "apocalypses" every day of their fucking lives for all of human history, especially during the past 400 years. Get up and stop the suicidal idealization of your own tragic death. Our lives in the first world are built off suffering. To lay down and say we don't have any power is to reject the duty we have as beneficiaries of that suffering.

If you are so convinced you're going to die young then die trying instead of baring your fucking throat.

[dumb-butch-syndrome]

Seeing all the discussions between USAmericans lately about the presidential election is so frustrating because like. y'all know you're going to have a president even if you don't vote for one, right?

It just feels like such a self-indulgent approach to morality because the only thing not voting does is coddle the feelings of the person refusing to vote bc they can be like 'well at least it's not MY fault'

Like the trolley problem isn't really about whether more or less death is better - less death is self-evidently better. That part is taken for granted. It's about your personal willingness to take an active role in the situation - to feel responsible for the outcome.

But the USA will have a president after the election and I haven't actually seen anyone arguing that trump would be the better choice, just that harris is also evil and voting for either candidate makes you morally repugnant. But listen. Listen. refusing to participate in the election doesn't absolve you from the outcome - it just shows you care more about your personal sense of moral superiority than the lives of the thousands of people worldwide who will be impacted by the results of the election and don't get a say.

Obviously we'd all prefer if there was an option on the ballot other than "genocide" and "more genocide than the other guy" but I'm seriously yet to see anyone who argues against voting harris properly acknowledge that if you don't vote then the election still has a winner.

If you're able to vote in the US presidential election then your hand is already on the lever. You're already involved. Choosing to walk away because 'they're both bad' does not morally absolve you from the outcome of the election, it just coddles your personal feelings.

It just feels like such a short-sighted and egocentric view on morality to go "well I'M going to remain morally pure. I'M not going to vote so I'M not culpable for whatever happens." Yes you are. You had the opportunity to pull the lever and you chose not to. Can you genuinely, hand to god, look me in the eye and tell me you think trump is the better choice. One of them IS going to be president and if you don't vote for kamala it IS going to be trump. The system sucks but if you're within it you have to choose one. There's no opting out if you opt out that's just a vote for the other guy so who are you picking.

[ancient-healer]

[missgirlsthings]

read all the way through!

while israel is killing his ailing mother, ahmed al nabih was cheated out of over twenty thousand euros by his gofundme organizer. he is starting over from scratch.

al-nabih is vetted on line 218, but do not donate to the linked campaign. donate to his new campaign run by a trusted organizer here. please do not let him suffer one more tragedy

[possessionisamyth]

If you live in the USA and you're pleading for donations to pay your rent, bills, or get food then dial 211! Please dial 211 before the last minute!

It's a toll free service with people who will help you find programs in your community to pay those bills, find food, and find housing! They will give you numbers to call so you can get help.

It is not 100% foolproof. Their job is to direct you to a program they believe will help your current issue, but it's still a step up from praying random strangers online will give you enough cash before a deadline! The added benefit of these community programs, which get funded by the local government most of the time, is if there are more people using them then they can get more money to help more people.

You're not taking resources from other people if you use your community services. Your taxes pay for them. Use them.

Dial 211 first to see if they can help, and if for some reason they can't, then make your donation posts!

https://www.211.org/

[thrivingisthegoal]

Golf Courses ARE Being Converted

The Solarpunk "fantasy" that so many of us tout as a dream vision, converting golf courses into ecological wonderlands, is being implemented across the USA according to this NYT article!

The article covers courses in Michigan, Pennsylvania, California, Colorado, and New York that are being bought and turned into habitat and hiking trails.

The article goes more into detail about how sand traps are being turned into sand boxes for kids, endangered local species are being planted, rocks for owl habitat are being installed, and that as these courses become wilder, they are creating more areas for biodiversity to thrive.

Most of the courses in transition are being bought by Local Land Trusts. Apparently the supply of golf courses in the USA is way over the demand, and many have been shut down since the early 2000s. While many are bought up and paved over, land Trusts have been able to buy several and turn them into what the communities want: public areas for people and wildlife. It does make a point to say that not every hold course location lends itself well to habitat for animals (but that doesn't mean it wouldn't make great housing!)

So lets be excited by the fact that people we don't even know about are working on the solutions we love to see! Turning a private space that needs thousands of gallons of water and fertilizer into an ecologically oriented public space is the future I want to see! I can say when I used to work in water conservation, we were getting a lot of clients that were golf courses that were interested in cutting their resource input, and they ended up planting a lot of natives! So even the golf courses that still operate could be making an effort.

So what I'd encourage you to do is see if there's any land or community trusts in your area, and see if you can get involved! Maybe even look into how to start one in your community! Through land trusts it's not always golf course conversions, but community gardens, solar fields, disaster adaptation, or low cost housing! (Here's a link to the first locator I found, but that doesn't mean if something isn't on here it doesn't exist in your area, do some digging!)

[languagexs]

Interpreting Language Nepali to English: Online Nepali to English Translation

Unlock the Power of Nepali to English Translation In our increasingly interconnected world, language barriers can often hinder effective communication and understanding between people from diverse cultural backgrounds. For the vibrant Nepali community residing in the United States, navigating the English language can pose significant challenges. However, with the advent of modern translation…

[ultralaser]

# [me from former socialist Yugoslavia: bro do you really thing communism is the only answer anyone can accept?] # I don't hate american communists in theory # it's in the 'family' of political stances where I can mostly assume people have good intentions # but some of them... do not want to address historical horrors caused by that system

companies really have got to be okay with stagnant profits. what is wrong with earning the same amount every year? why does it always have to be more? it’s not sustainable. there are only so many people on the planet you can profit from 😭

[bestusaplumbingservice]

Navigating Plumbing Emergencies: A Comprehensive Guide to USA Plumbing Service Solutions

When unexpected plumbing issues strike, it can be a stressful experience for any homeowner. Leaky pipes, clogged drains, or malfunctioning water heaters can disrupt daily routines and lead to potential damage if not addressed promptly. In such crucial moments, having a reliable USA Plumbing Service at your disposal becomes paramount.

The USA Plumbing Service industry has evolved to meet the diverse needs of homeowners across the country. These professional services are equipped to handle a wide range of plumbing emergencies efficiently and effectively. Let's explore the comprehensive solutions they offer in times of crisis.

1. **Prompt Response:** One of the key advantages of relying on a reputable USA Plumbing Service is their swift response to emergencies. Whether it's a burst pipe or a sudden sewer backup, these professionals understand the urgency and act promptly to minimize damage and inconvenience. Their 24/7 availability ensures that assistance is just a phone call away, providing homeowners with much-needed peace of mind.

2. **Expert Diagnosis:** USA Plumbing Service oviders bring a wealth of experience and expertise to the table. When faced with a plumbing emergency, their skilled technicians conduct thorough assessments to identify the root cause of the issue. This diagnostic approach allows them to implement precise solutions, preventing recurring problems and ensuring a long-lasting fix.

3. **Comprehensive Repairs:** The term "emergency" implies the need for immediate and effective solutions. USA Plumbing Service professionals are well-equipped to handle a variety of repairs, from sealing leaks and replacing damaged pipes to unclogging stubborn drains. Their comprehensive approach addresses not only the visible symptoms but also the underlying issues, preventing future complications.

4. **State-of-the-Art Equipment:** To tackle plumbing emergencies efficiently, USA Plumbing Service providers leverage advanced tools and equipment. Whether it's using high-pressure hydro-jetting to clear stubborn blockages or employing sophisticated leak detection technology, these professionals utilize cutting-edge resources to deliver top-notch service.

5. **Transparent Communication:** A reliable USA Plumbing Service understands the importance of clear communication with homeowners. From explaining the nature of the problem to detailing the proposed solutions and associated costs, transparency is a hallmark of their service. This ensures that homeowners are well-informed and can make decisions based on a complete understanding of the situation.

In conclusion, when plumbing emergencies arise, enlisting the help of a reputable USA Plumbing Service is a wise decision. Their prompt response, expert diagnosis, comprehensive repairs, state-of-the-art equipment, and transparent communication make them invaluable partners in resolving plumbing issues swiftly and effectively. By having a reliable USA Plumbing Service on standby, homeowners can navigate emergencies with confidence, knowing that skilled professionals are ready to provide the necessary solutions.

[paidant]

Are you looking to hire an app developer?

Here are some essential tips to consider before making a decision!

Checkout More: Hire remote developers | Remote developers | Paidant

[queerliblib]

Hey Tumblr, we're Queer Liberation Library (QLL)

we're a queer digital library, by & for the LGBTQ+ community

Our Mission: Queer Liberation Library fights to build a vibrant, flourishing queer future by connecting LGBTQ+ people with literature, information, and resources that celebrate the unique and empowering diversity of our community.

Learn more about us on our website: https://www.queerliberationlibrary.org/

or other socials:

Instagram: @queerliblib 

Tiktok: @queerliblib

bsky: @queerliblib.bsky.social

(here’s our linktr.ee as well)

QLL launched on October 23rd, 2023, and are currently accepting membership applications on an ongoing basis! Please note we are a US-based organization and are currently only able to make our library available to patrons in the USA. If we are ever able to expand internationally we promise to shout the news from our proverbial rooftops <3

we’re a 501(c)3 non-profit, and are currently funded entirely by donations - you can support our mission by donating here.

you can also get some rad QLL (union made!) merch here!

[trans-axolotl]

US Harm Reduction Resources

continually updating, not a complete list. feel free to add on any resources you find helpful.

Free Safer Supplies:

Each organization will have different supplies, but generally, harm reduction orgs provide things like syringes, safer snorting + smoking kits, Narcan, condoms, lube, and wound care supplies. Each org has different policies for how to get supplies--some do deliveries, some have drop in centers, some only do one to one needle exchange, some are more flexible.

Next Distro: mail based syringe provider for certain states. Also mails free Narcan.

NASEN: national map of syringe providers

a lot of harm reduction collectives aren't going to have their information listed on big national websites--it's always worth searching "harm reduction in my area" and seeing what's around you. Even if you don't live in a big city, there might be a harm reduction organization in your state that can help you find someone closer to you. there's a lot of rad people doing underground work who want to be there to help you who aren't as easy to find online. If there's street medic collectives, mutual aid groups or groups like Food not Bombs in your area, you can ask people in them who might know where to find harm reduction services in your area!

Drug Users Unions:

Drug users unions are activist groups made for people who use drugs, by people who use drugs! Drug users unions do advocacy work to end criminalization, as well as providing vital community support. Many drug users unions are also inclusive of sex workers and work to decriminalize sex work as well. You can search for "drug users union" in your state.

Urban Survivors Union: National, has resources for creating drug users union

Chosen Few: Drug users union for Black drug users in DC

San Francisco Drug users union

Sex Work Advocacy Groups:

Organizations that do decrim advocacy and provide support for sex workers.

Sex Worker Outreach Project USA- National, has chapters in many states.

Black Sex Worker Collective

Sex Workers Project

How to Use Safely:

Guides, videos, toolkits for safer use!

Harm Reduction Coalition Resource Library

Getting Off Right: A Safety Manual for Injection Drug Users

Safer Crack Smoking

Safer Snorting

Safer Hormone Injection

Levels of Risk: Veins

Wound Care video w/ ASL

How to Use Fentanyl Test Strips

DanceSafe-testing kits, including reagent testing kits!

Erowid-shares experiences people have with different drugs, dosages, what things to expect

Bluelight- another forum for discussing experiences with drugs.

Drug Interactions Checker

Sex Work Resources:

Tricks of the Trade by L. Synn Stern: tips for street based sex work

A Quick and Dirty Sex Worker Safety Toolkit

Girls Do What they Have to Do To Survive by YWEP

Dis/Organizing: How We Build Collectives Beyond Institutions by Rachel Kuo & Lorelei Lee

Tryst Blog

Hotlines:

Never Use Alone: 877-696-1996. Overdose Prevention Hotline--Volunteers stay on the phone with you while you use and call emergency services if you overdose.

HIPS Hotline-​​​1 (800) 676-4477. Emotional support for drug users and sex workers. Does not work with cops.

feel free to add on more resources. love + lube <3