My friend Serena Sanford is a young trans woman living in the Bay Area who needs money in order to acquire safe housing.

In February, she received a notice to vacate from her landlord. She tried to find alternative housing, but faced discrimination in the housing search for being trans.

Because she couldn't find housing, she had to move back in with her parents in April, which is an extremely transphobic and abusive environment. She tries to avoid common spaces and therefore isn't eating enough. She doesn't even feel safe using the restroom as she has been purposely walked in on. I am extremely worried for her mental health and safety if she isn't able to move out immediately.

Her parents live 3.3 miles away from a bus stop and refuse to drive her, so she lost her ability to go to work. Because she cannot work, she can't afford to put a deposit down on new housing. Because she's stuck at her parents house without any transportation access, she cannot work. She really does not want to take money from others, but unfortunately she is stuck in a trap that only we can help her out of.

Once she has money to put down a deposit she will also need to find housing, so if you have any leads for affordable trans friendly housing in the Bay Area or even in the larger state of California that does not require proof-of-income please get in touch. Importantly, Serena doesn’t have her license and uses public transportation, so she must live somewhere where she can get to and from work.