Black and Pink Announces Purchase of North Omaha Church to Create Housing for LGBTQIA+ Youth
by Dawaune Lamont Hayes & vivian Caniglia
Black and Pink, an advocacy group for LGBTQIA2S+ (Lesbian, Gay, Bi, Trans, Queer, Intersex, Asexual, Two Spirit, plus) peoples affected by the prison industrial complex, announced on April 9 the purchase of a North Omaha church for housing and community space for young adults. The announcement is a big step forward for the organization bringing their “Opportunity Campus” to life.
“How can we make sure that we're building these initiatives based in the autonomy and the brilliance of these individuals?” asks Dominique Morgan, Executive Director of Black and Pink.
She says moving away from a purely service-based model of re-entry to a community-oriented approach honors the dignity of all people, especially young people who are trying to find their place.
Black and Pink, founded in 2005, is a prison abolitionist organization that is dedicated to abolishing the criminal punishment system as well as providing support to LGBTQ+ individuals living with HIV/AIDS. Homelessness and housing instability is common for LGBTQ+ youth due to family conflict or unsafe circumstances and they often face larger obstacles to safe and secure housing.
The organization opened its first shared living space called Lydon House on February 16, 2020. This house provides living arrangements for those exiting the carceral system and helps them get reacclimated while being in an affirming environment.
Before Lydon House opened, Morgan knew there needed to be a place for young people – this was emphasized by numerous calls regarding 17 and 18 year-olds seeking shelter after being emancipated or kicked out.
“The courts didn’t want to ‘deal’ with these kids wanting their hormones or gender-affirming surgery, or even being referred to with their affirming pronouns,” said Morgan, “They were just pushing the kids out in the world, excited to identify these young people as adults, to be able to arrest them and put them in the adult system.”
“I knew it was unfair for young people to have to compromise.”
Black and Pink had originally planned to open a space in the lower level of Kingdom Builders Christian Center. “We purchased the church and the land and we were going forward with that project,” said Morgan. That was when Andrew Alemán, Director of People Power and National Partnerships for Black and Pink, recommended looking at more options for the best space to house the vision before settling in.
Alemán and a group of consultants, including the Black Woman-led Blair Freeman Group, explored properties all across the city. The church at 25th Avenue and Evans Street was rumored to be sold to speculators so their consulting team arranged to see the space immediately. In June 2020, Morgan and her team toured the facility that, she said, was deeply personal, “The neighborhood association that encompasses the church, my grandfather founded in 1979,” she mused, “[I was] remembering growing up in North Omaha and walking those streets and in that moment it felt right.”
“[I was] remembering growing up in North Omaha and walking those streets and in that moment it felt right.”
- Dominique Morgan
photo credit: Black and Pink
Black and Pink began a campaign to raise $300,000 to purchase the campus which will provide housing and services for LGBTQ+ youth and young adults (ages 19-24). Daily services such as a food pantry and other resources similar to the Lydon House will also be offered at no cost.
“We didn’t have a name for a long time. We thought ‘what do we want this space to be about?’ and that was Opportunity.”
Morgan says the whole campus wasn’t the original idea, but the concept grew with the needs and desires of the community. It was always about centering young people and North Omaha while ensuring the presence of Queer organizations and spaces.
The organization raised $70,000 in community donations, making it possible for Morgan to sign off on the purchase. On April 6, 2021, Black and Pink submitted the funds to secure the building, a grand church and attached duplex that were expertly crafted over 100 years ago.
“Architecture has been a part of history all over the world of making statements. Buildings have been a footnote and a validation that people have existed and it has been a tangible way to bequeath culture to the next generation,” said Morgan. She explained how being a Black Trans Woman that grew up in North Omaha, she never saw, felt, or experienced anything that represented the two largest parts of her.
“North Omaha deserves this even if some folks in North Omaha don’t feel we are ready for it.”
North Omaha has deep roots in the church and some questioned the meaning of an organization like Black and Pink moving into a former religious center. “The truth is the traditional spaces of churches and Christianity has been used to indoctrinate and hold Black folks hostage since we were stolen and brought to this country. And it’s not an accident that if you look at the largest buildings in any Black neighborhood in the U.S. it will be a church,” said Morgan.
For her though, it’s not about ignoring the past or disrespecting culture, “As an abolitionist, first I look at the opportunity for restoration. If I feel like there’s not the space for restoration, I can always find the opportunity for transformation. In the spirit of transformation, I don’t want to undo or throw out the window the history of this very Black space on the corner of 25th and Evans. I want to evolve it.”
Although the large cross will be taken down, Black and Pinks want to make sure it is kept in the community. “It’s still a church of some form and I think a lot of people don’t see it,” said Morgan, “We deserve as Black Queer folks to walk down to the street and not catch five buses...or go to Chicago to get an experience of solidarity.”
“Our tagline for Opportunity Campus is ‘Dreams without works is dead’,” said Morgan who was inspired by a saying from her grandmother, meaning one must put ideas into action to get outcomes.
“I don’t want to lose the power of North Omaha in this process because its inherently essential as much as making sure that this is a space of queerness, of power of the history of the queer community... and is rooted in the power of young people.”
Morgan said that Opportunity Campus will open to people across the United States and will serve as a center for LGBTQ+ individuals to be introduced and connected to Omaha in a restorative way. Black and Pink is embarking on a renovation and rehab of the building in phases, with the housing to be made available first. Updates will be provided as they are made available.
While the initial purchase is secured, Black and Pink is still fundraising for total costs of the Opportunity Campus and is seeking campaign ambassadors to organize within their community to donate. View aerial footage of the neighborhood and building.
More information about the Black and Pink and the Opportunity Campus.
