Community Fund for BLM Portland

BLM Portland was established as an organization dedicated to and aligned with the demands and mission of the national Movement for Black Lives. We are a collective of local organizers, activists, and community members who are promoting racial justice and social consciousness by holding our shared community and government accountable.  

Through our work, we seek to end the systemic oppression of Black people by:
•Mobilizing a sustainable system fo reparations
•Investing in the Black community via direct support to Black owned businesses, Black designated scholarships, and community support networks
•Dismantling the political and policing systems that oppress us
•Protecting and advocating for our Black LGBTQ+ siblings”

This fund was created to support the efforts of the organizers in Portland, Maine who are doing the work to stand in solidarity with the national Black Lives Matter movement, and now, we are are asking our Maine community to help support our work.

Our funding priority is centered around and supporting the organizers of BLM Portland, as well as fundraising for bail bonds and direct financial support to Black folks who are on the ground organizing. We will also use funds to secure first aid and social distancing supplies (masks, hand sanitizer, wipes, etc.) so that we remain in accordance with both local and national distancing guidelines as well as the Black Lives Matter National response to COVID-19.

Please reach out to community members, friends and family and ask if they are able to financially contribute to the movement for Black lives.  

Additional information: 
Black Lives Matter Portland is a majority femme lead collective of local activists, organizers, and community members who have come together to create an organization to amplify and advance the voices of Black folks in Maine. Our 12 founding members come from many different backgrounds, but all have come to call Portland, Maine home. 
I am a member of Black Lives Matter Portland who set up this fundraiser as a means to provide financial backing for our organization. We are in the final steps of securing a financial sponsor, where the funds will be directed through for our use. 
The funds will be dispersed throughout several different avenues including but not limited to: organizing planned actions/protests/rallies, organizer compensation, bail fund support, and donating to/working with other local organizations who are advancing anti-racism work in the state of Maine. Additionally, funds will be used to plan larger community wide events centered around restorative justice and healing, including compensation of restorative justice coordinators and counselors to repair harm in our community. 
The plan is as follows: the funds will be deposited into my personal account under my name (Hawo Mohamed) then the entire sum will be sent to our fiscal sponsor. From there, we will be able to use the funds as stated above. We will continue to update our donors as well as keep records of where funds are going to to maintain transparency and trust with each other and to our community. 
The beneficiary’s full name is: Hawo Mohamed, and I am one of the organizers of this collective.