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Help Destiny Get To Howard

Peace Yall, my name is Destiny Harris and I am a black, queer, low income youth organizer from the west side of Chicago. I attend Howard University in DC majoring in Political Science and at the start of the Fall 2020 semester I will be a sophomore. I am the oldest of seven, first generation college student in my entire family.  It is rare that people from where I come from (severly impoverished Austin community on the west side of Chicago) get to attend college without financial burden. We come from the part of the city that is ignored strategically by elected officials because it is predominantly black and poor. I come from a community void of resources. Void of resourced schools, affordable public housing,  adequate housing, void of access to healthy food and employment--- but overly abundant in police. Getting into community organizing was necessary for my survival and demanding more for my people. I got into community organizing almost 3 years ago as youth involved in the #NoCopAcademy campaign, a  youth led campaign that demanded the city of chicago stop prioritizing police and start prioritizing youth, and  work to change the narrative that community safety is not about police, but instead about investment in resources. Since then I have done such things as opening up Bernie Sanders rally in Chicago and sharing the story of how electoral politics won't save us alone, organizing on the ground will. I started a chapter of WeAreDissenters at Howard University, a new youth lead anti-militarist, anti-war org that is calling our very powerful universities who have hands in the military industrial complex to divest and recently I have been donating funds from the sell of my handcoiled wire earrings (IG: Dipsandcoils) to mutual aid funds, I have been on the frontlines of the protests that erupted this week and even organized a west side cleanup to aid in rebuilding some of the small businesses that were hit. (fuck big name capitalist corporations). I ride hard and throwdown for my city I say all this to say community organizing  is where my heart is and that's why I will be continuing my education in political science. These last few weeks have been hard on me and despite that the government still is collecting money for college students. It is the time of the year to apply for a parent plus loan, the total cost of this fundraiser is the total cost of accumulated debt I will have at the end of my next three years at Howard University from parent plus loans. I am the oldest of 7 and don't want to begin burying my parents in a hole of debt they can't recover from. Any and all donations would help and if you don't want to donate. consider buying a pair of my handcoiled earrings as 75% of the funds are being donated to minnesota freedom fund to aid in bailing out those on the ground in minneapolis. https://www.instagram.com/dipsandcoils/  

To all my black people I love you, reach out to me if you need anything. don't forget to breath, in this collective black struggle we all we got.

Organizer

Destiny Harris
Organizer
Chicago, IL

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