Our Mission
Beyond These Walls is a 501(c)3 organization based in the Pacific Northwest that works to achieve justice and liberation for LGBTQIA2S+ people incarcerated in the Pacific Northwest and the world through advocacy, service, and organizing.
Our Vision
Investment in the leadership, skill development, and societal reentry of incarcerated LGBTQIA2S+ people.
Compassionate, community solutions to violence, abuse, and harm, as distinct from existing/ineffective correctional philosophies; up to and including a PNW without prisons, jails, or detention centers.
Progress led and informed by impacted humans -- specifically incarcerated queer people.
A future with community support systems rooted in racial justice and accountable to communities, as a part of a larger effort to dismantle white supremacy.
Our Values
Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer, Intersex, Asexual, & Two-Spirit (LGBTQIA2S+) focus: We support marginalized people within in already marginalized group.
Racial justice: We are dismantling white supremacy and following the leadership of BIPOC, AAPI communities.
Compassion: We believe that every person is better than their worst decision, that not all people commit the crimes that they are incarcerated for, and that all incarcerated individuals are deserving of dignity and respect.
Community: We know that people most affected must be the people leading the work. “Nothing about us without us.”
Coalition-building: Our work shouldn't be done in isolation- working in coalition with aligned organizations is necessary to achieve liberation.
Pragmatism: Our strategy is in line with idealism, embracing tension between Abolition & Direct Service.
Elevation: We follow the leadership of people currently & formerly incarcerated.
Our Impact
$14,000 reentry assistance and support to individuals in prison
32 care packages
45 direct cash support to both currently and formerly incarcerated
Provided LGBTQIA+ related training to WA DOC Reentry teams
Our History
Beyond These Walls was founded in 2011 as a project of the National LGBTQ Task Force. We started as a project to send cards to LGBTQ prisoners during the holidays. We decided to try to extend community to our LGBTQ family living behind bars. We did not expect the overwhelming response from prisoners. We received hundreds of letters of thanks and cries for help. As our project grew, our understanding of what prisoners need and were asking for also grew. Over the years we have evolved into a robust community of people offering a number of programs to support LGBTQ prisoners.
We are a Trans led organization with an exclusively LGBTQ staff and advisory committee. We believe in an LGBTQ community without conditions, where we welcome and embrace people trying to be a part of our community, even if they’ve made mistakes. We believe the criminal justice system is inherently flawed. We also believe that if people who are locked up are asking us for help right now, we have to answer their calls.