A Pride Center program that has for years provided services to LGBTQ+ people affected by violence is continuing at a partner organization.
Since the Pride Center of Vermont paused operations earlier this month, its SafeSpace Anti-Violence Program has been housed at the Vermont Network Against Domestic and Sexual Violence, a statewide nonprofit that has been operating since 1986, according to a press release last week.
The program has played a crucial role in helping the LGBTQ+ community access essential resources — such as advocacy, education and community support when they experience violence, threats or intimidation. That is urgent as threats against the community continue to escalate, program director Em Russo said.
“The survivors we support rely on our advocates to offer an affirming space where their identities are not only validated, but celebrated,” they said in the Oct. 20 Vermont Network release.
The transition is designed to ensure uninterrupted support and advocacy for LBGTQ+ survivors of violence, said Connor Daley, a member of the Pride Center’s board of directors, this week.
The Pride Center initially partnered with Vermont Network’s Steps to End Domestic Violence to keep its free and confidential support hotline running 24/7. That was a temporary arrangement, according Sarah Robinson, co-executive director of the network.
SafeSpace advocates can still be reached through the hotline at 802-863-0003.
Operating since 1999 and one of the state’s largest organizations supporting the LGBTQ+ community, the Pride Center of Vermont continues to review its finances and look for solutions to bridge a $350,000 funding shortfall.
Much of the gap was caused by the unpredictability of a reimbursement-based state funding model and a prior deficit. But the main issue was “structural rather than situational,” the board of directors announced in an update last week.
The board is working with community partners on reforms and plans to launch opportunities for community involvement in the coming weeks.
Correction: A previous version of this story mis-identified the pronouns of Em Russo and mischaracterized the nature of the partnership between the Pride Center and Vermont Network’s Steps to End Domestic Violence.
