About
What is Mutual Aid?
The concept
Mutual aid is the understanding that we live in an unjust society that divides us from ourselves and one another, and that it is often better to take our lives into our own hands and solve our problems because we are all in this together.
Mutual aid is building relationships with your neighbors based on trust and common interest; sharing things rather than hoarding things; treating no one as disposable; providing all kinds of support, ranging from food prep to childcare to translation to emotional support, and recognizing the value of all of them; a political education opportunity, where we build the relationships and analysis to understand why we are in the conditions that we’re in
Mutual aid is not transactional, only for disasters/crises, charity, or a way to “save” people.
What is St Louis Mutual Aid?
The collective
We are a network of people who believe in a decentralized form of community support and solidarity where individuals and groups can come together to assist one another without relying on traditional hierarchies or formal institutions.
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STL Mutual Aid started in 2020 when the pandemic hit; community members came together immediately and began organizing around taking care of one another. Since then, STLMA has directly distributed almost $1 million in financial solidarity to the St Louis community, hosted countless food shares, delivered groceries, and held events connecting and supporting neighbors to each other.
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Yes! We are structured in a way that all have opportunities to participate in whatever way they can.
If you’re interested in getting involved, check out our opportunities here.
And as always, all are welcome at our events. Come get involved with our community!
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We are not a non-profit, we are a network. Because of this, we do not have any other funding sources outside of the donations and contributions we receive from our community and grants we apply for.
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Yes!
STL Mutual Aid is fiscally sponsored by the Open Collective Foundation, which offers nonprofit status + fundraising + money management software to hundreds of aligned groups across the country. Since Open Collective Foundation has 501(c)(3) status with the IRS, all financial contributions to STL Mutual Aid are tax-deductible to the extent of the law.
Once a donation is received, we will issue a receipt that certifies that you have made this charitable contribution and you are not receiving any goods or services in return.