Fighting for Our Survival — Building Toward Liberation
At Diversity Alliance of the Puget Sound (DAPS), advocacy isn’t a sideline — it’s a lifeline. From protests to policy, from courtrooms to community centers, we organize for the safety, dignity, and rights of trans and gender-diverse people in Washington and beyond.
We fight with strategy. We show up with care. And we never back down from the truth: our lives are political, and our survival is revolutionary.
Advocacy Goals
Our advocacy work is grounded in real needs and lived experience. Here’s what we’re actively working toward:
1. Organize and respond to state violence
Speak out, mobilize, and act in response to police brutality, anti-trans legislation, and fascist escalations.
2. Create safe access to life-saving resources
Partner with shelters, clinics, and grassroots providers to ensure trans, BIPOC, disabled, and unhoused individuals can access support without risk or retraumatization.
3. Provide court support and accompaniment
Escort survivors and community members to legal proceedings where traditional safety systems have failed.
4. Develop non-police standby options
Through our SOOP program, we offer abolitionist, trauma-informed alternatives to state intervention at events, protests, and high-stakes situations.
5. Build and maintain a statewide resource database
Break down barriers to services by creating accessible tools for finding gender-affirming, housing-stable, and harm-reduction-oriented support.
6. Reduce harm caused by State and Government systems
Collaborate with local orgs and policymakers to disrupt policies that criminalize and neglect LGBTQIA+, houseless, BIPOC, and disabled communities.
7. Advocate for the rights of incarcerated people
Work with allies to change how trans and queer people are treated in Washington’s carceral systems.
What We’ve Done: Our Advocacy in Action
Legislation & Policy
Helped pass SB 6105 – Strippers’ Bill of Rights (2024), expanding workplace protections and safety for adult entertainers.
Provided community testimony and comment on multiple trans-focused and abolitionist bills (past and current sessions).
Ongoing advocacy around gender-affirming care, name change access, decarceration, and harm reduction.
Proclamations, Flags & Civic Power
2021: Raised the first trans flag on government property in Washington (Tacoma Fire HQ).
2025: Raised the trans flag over the Tacoma Dome for the first time in city history.
12 total proclamations issued by:
- City of Tacoma
- King County
- State of Washington
- For both TDOR and TDOV
Helped pass Resolution 41628 (2025), affirming Tacoma’s commitment to LGBTQIA2S+ civil rights and safety.
Community & Protest
Members of DAPS’ founding board were present and active during the 2020 BLM uprisings, providing supplies, support, and solidarity. These experiences helped shape our models for mutual aid, trauma-informed organizing, and safety without police.
In 2024, DAPS helped defend Denny Blaine Park — a historic queer and trans gathering space in Seattle — from coordinated disinformation and erasure efforts. Our leadership testified, organized, and helped shift the narrative toward safety and community preservation.
DAPS has supported or organized protest safety, communications, and on-site solidarity at key community actions, including:
- Hands Off Protest (2025)
- MayDay USA Counter-Protest (2025)
- Stand Up for Transgender Kids (2025)
- Drag Storytime Defense (2023, 2025)
- BLM Seattle Protests (2020)
- Seattle Public Library WOLF Protest (2019)
Through our SOOP (Securing Our Own People) program, we’ve provided abolitionist, non-police security and medical support at:
- TDOR Seattle & Tacoma (2018–2024)
- Redmond, Sno Valley, Anacortes, Woodinville, and Alki Beach Prides
- Protests, vigils, and mutual aid events across Washington
How We Advocate
Abolitionist Values
We don’t work with police or former police. We build alternatives grounded in care, not control.
Trauma-Informed Practice
Our approaches center survivors, not systems — and we adapt in real time to what our people need.
Community-Led Leadership
Our advocacy is led by the most impacted: trans people, disabled people, sex workers, formerly and currently incarcerated people, and BIPOC community members.
Rapid Response
We issue public statements, mobilize safely, and provide direct aid in moments of violence, loss, and resistance — from Club Q to Tacoma and beyond.
Get Involved
📣 Submit Public Comment or Testify
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