BAWS GRANT APPLICATION

Update 2024:

Please read our latest blog post: Mutual Aid Program Paused

Below is a short excerpt from the post.

“Given our financial constraints, we've decided to pause our Mutual Aid Grant Program, meaning we cannot provide funds to our community for now. The demands of our grants program currently exceed our financial and time capacities. We do not take this decision lightly, as we have deep and ongoing relationships with our mutual aid recipients. 

While our Mutual Aid grant program is on hold, we will primarily focus on fundraising efforts to help sustain BAWS operations and initiatives into the future. We will also work on strengthening internal systems to support our team and clarify our programs' purpose, practice, and outcomes. During this pause, we remain committed to various ongoing programs, including in-person social gatherings, weekly Art Club meetings, resource fairs, clothing swaps, and skill-sharing sessions. Additionally, we're broadening our Resource Guides and online support channels. We will continue to be available through email for those seeking individual support and resource requests.”

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Thank you for your interest in a mutual aid grant. You can read a full description of all of BAWS mutual aid offerings here, and read below for details on how to apply for funds:

“Solidarity is not an act of charity, but mutual aid between forces fighting for the same objective.” ~Samora Machel

Update 10/21/2023: 

We’ve made a few changes to our grant offerings, including the option to apply for crowdfunding. We can disperse funds by Direct Deposit/Wire Transfer, Check, and Payments. Please read further to apply for funds.

The next application period will be from November 13-20, 2023. This will be the last application period for the remainder of 2023. With increasing applicants and higher needs, we will prioritize first-time applicants for this next grant cycle.

We will post the next application period for 2024 as soon as we can.

Eligibility requirements:

  • Bay Area sex workers from all parts of the trade (strippers, dancers, FSSW, massage, online and cam performers, pro-dommes & subs, porn performers, and more) 

  • You depend on sex work to pay your bills and do not have other forms of support, such as from family or partners

  • You are unable to access work in different industries

We have limited funds, and these grants are intended for folks who do not have other options.

We prioritize requests from Bay Area BIPOC, trans/GNC, disabled, and street-based workers. With that said, we are sensitive to the factors that make survival difficult for many (dependents, documentation status, health, etc.) and will consider these when granting requests. 

Verification: To ensure that these funds are indeed going to our community, we ask that you provide at least one of the following forms of verification:

  • Link to your current work website or ad (with your contact info listed)

  • Link to your professional social media (with your contact info listed)

  • Reference from another current BAWS member or mutually verifiable SWer

We understand that it is not always easy to come up with verification, and we are working on finding more ways to make these funds more accessible within the capabilities of BAWS. If none of these options are available, please let us know why, and we can try our best to accommodate.  

While we will try to meet everyone’s requests, the number of requests, prioritization, and situation of those requesting will inform how much we can grant. We will not be able to grant multiple requests per month.  

Grant Application:

~ APPLICATIONS ARE ONLY THE FIRST WEEK OF EVERY MONTH ~ OPEN NOVEMBER 13-20, 2023

PLEASE FILL OUT THE APPLICATION FORM HERE. 

Email us at BAWSGRANTS@PROTON.ME if you have any questions.

For your security: We use Google products to collect and store information. Please factor this into your decision to apply for a grant and what information you include. 

For more information on navigating COVID-19 as a sex worker and additional support options, please check out our latest SW resource page.

To donate to our mutual aid fund, click here.

We want to thank  Lysistrata Mutual Aid Fund for inspiring our grant language and protocol and supporting the BAWS Emergency Grants initiative. Be sure to check out their website here and support their efforts if you can.