April 22, 2021

Trigger Warning: mentions of fatal police violence Many of us breathed a sigh of relief Tuesday when Derek Chauvin was convicted of all charges for the killing of Goerge Floyd. For some of us, the verdict comes with the hope that perhaps this signals a move forward in our collective work to hold law enforcement accountable for the deadly violence they perpetrate against Black and brown people. But even with our relief, we know there is so much[...]

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April 19, 2021

The New York City Anti-Violence Project (AVP) is pleased to announce that on Thursday, April 8, AVP’s management voluntarily recognized a staff union. Dear Community, AVP’s non-management staff is now represented by the Office and Professional Employees International Union (OPEIU) Local 153. The management and board of AVP wholeheartedly support the union and are looking forward to partnering with all staff as we negotiate a union contrac[...]

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March 23, 2021

The New York City Anti-Violence Project (AVP) stands shoulder to shoulder with members of Asian communities across the country who are mourning the eight lives lost in the Atlanta massage parlor shooting on March 16. We condemn the anti-Asian hate violence, which has long persisted in this country and has increased over the past year. As the largest LGBTQ-specific anti-violence organization in the country, we recognize that hate violence impacts [...]

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February 26, 2021

In supporting LGBTQ survivors of violence, it’s always important for us to address and affirm the experiences survivors navigate. So what is economic abuse? According to the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence, economic abuse involves maintaining control over financial resources, withholding access to money, or attempting to prevent a person from working and/or attending school in an effort to create financial dependence as a means [...]

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When Chanel Lopez was approached by AVP’s Client Services department, she immediately became interested in the opportunity to work as a counselor with LGBTQ survivors of hate, intimate partner, and domestic violence. Her seven years at AVP empowered her as a survivor herself of domestic violence, learning new ways to cope with her trauma, to support other survivors through theirs.  Now, Chanel is New York City’s first Transgender Communit[...]

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February 3, 2021

A draconian piece of legislation that has for decades been wielded to harm trans and gender nonconforming communities has finally been repealed. Since the 1970s, New York State has enabled policing of trans and gender non-conforming people based on a discriminatory and highly variable set of standards relating to “loitering for the purpose of prostitution,” whose enforcement was entirely up to the discretion of police officers. TGNC people ha[...]

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January 19, 2021

As we prepare for tomorrow’s inauguration, AVP is inspired and hopeful for a shift towards healing, justice, and accountability for our nation. We are optimistic about the intentions of Joe Biden and Kamala Harris to repair many of the harms President Trump inflicted on the most marginalized in our communities. In his first ten days in office, President-elect Biden has already committed to begin addressing the multiple crises of the COVID-19 pa[...]

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January 6, 2021

AVP condemns the violence occurring in our nation’s capital, and any and all attempts to overturn a free and fair election. In failing to recognize the results of the election and commit to a peaceful transfer of power, the administration and the president have undermined faith in our democratic process, sowing doubt that now threatens our democracy. The mob laying siege to the capitol building is a direct culmination of escalating violent rhet[...]

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December 17, 2020

This interview has been shortened and condensed for clarity. In 1978, Andy Austin moved to New York City’s Chelsea neighborhood and found community in the Chelsea Gay Association (CGA), a social group for gay men. He invited his long-time partner, Michael Sonberg, to join and together, they became founding members of the NYC Anti-Violence Project. When queer men began to face violent attacks coming to and from the gay bars on the west sid[...]

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November 20, 2020

Today on Trans Day of Remembrance, AVP joins our trans, gender nonconfirming, and non-binary community in rage and resistance as we remember and honor the TGNC lives lost this year. AVP stands alongside and in solidarity with the trans community, its leaders and trans-led organizations, today and everyday, as allies in the fight to end anti-trans violence.  2020 has been a year of immense grief for our community. It is a year marked by a glob[...]

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November 2, 2020

These days, we are all feeling the impact of upheaval, violence, fear, pain, and rage, carrying the weight of it in our spirit, as we work to meet the challenges coming at us each and every day. We all know the challenges — pandemic, uprising, election, violence — even if they affect us differently.   In the midst of all this, we must show up — for ourselves, and for one another. During these times, it is especially important to lea[...]

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August 31, 2020

Media Contact: Eliel Cruz, Director of Communications, New York City Anti-Violence Project ecruz@avp.org, 917-727-2107 David Shanies, Attorney representing Polanco family david@shanieslaw.com 212-951-1710 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE  Family of Layleen Polanco Settles Civil Suit With New York City, Continues Advocacy #JusticeForLayleen August 31, NEW YORK, NY — The family of Layleen Polanco, a 27-year-old Afro-Latinx trans woman who di[...]

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