UPDATE as of MARCH 10th, 2024:

Hi beautiful community,

Sylvie here - Egypt gave me her blessing to re-energize this fundraiser on her behalf, and asked that I pass on her gratitude for everything you all have done for her. Since April 2022 (and via sporadic crowdsourcing efforts pre-dating that time), your contributions have subsidized countless groceries, cabs to doctors’ and specialist visits, and refills of pain medication. This fundraiser has provided a vital lifeline as Egypt continues to navigate a world that refuses to meet even the most basic of human needs, let alone those of someone who requires a more complex support system.

Unfortunately, the circumstances that complicate Egypt’s path to dignified survival have not improved. Egypt’s needs remain the same as before: income to cover food, pain medication, transportation, and delivery services, as she is in near constant pain, and the strain from having to take public transportation to appointments and errands is immense. Egypt has severe injuries to her shoulder and spine, and the medical system continues to bounce her between specialist appointments who only provide temporary pain relief, when she desperately needs surgery to begin healing at a more permanent level.

Furthermore, donations to this campaign have dwindled significantly since its inception in April of 2022. The “amount raised” figure on this campaign (currently at $16,940), while impressive, reflects the cumulative funds amassed over the past 680 days - when broken down, this amounts to Egypt receiving around $25/day for the past two years. We have lost over fifteen monthly donors since 2022, a loss of over $350 per month in donations, meaning that Egypt is receiving a mere fraction of the initial funds that she was when the campaign began. While this is understandable, as financial circumstances are bound to fluctuate, there are no longer enough funds to sustain Egypt, and her situation remains dire.

I hope this message, while urgent and pleading, accurately conveys how thankful we are for your ongoing support up until this point; Egypt is one of the most gracious, enthusiastic, and vocally thankful people I have ever met, and it is not lost on her how special it is that community, even total strangers, have stepped up to share a bit of their resources with her. One could write a thesis on how Egypt embodies what it means to feed into your community. Sharing any abundance with her is ensuring she will pay it forward tenfold, and that is not an exaggeration. I'll try to cap off my ramblings here and extend the deepest gratitude to you all. We truly do keep us safe, and Egypt thanks you all for it every day.

In solidarity,
Sylvie (with permission from Egypt Dior)

For those who would prefer to send directly to Egypt, her payment information is as follows:

Cashapp: $EgyptDior
Venmo: Egypt-Dior-2
Paypal.me/EgyptDior

P.S. Because Egypt is a humble woman and won’t bring this up on her own, I will tell you: she is also an unpaid caretaker in her community, regularly traveling from Upper Manhattan to Brooklyn to check on the elders she grew up with in Bed Stuy, even while struggling with chronic pain and anxiety. Additionally, Egypt has taken it upon herself to perform necessary repairs and maintenance in her apartment building for free, since her landlord is deliberately neglectful of the building and its elder and disabled tenants. This is an individual who will give you the clothes off her back even if she has nothing left to wear. We know Egypt well enough to know that she can’t be stopped from loving on her community even at her own expense, and so instead I am hoping to provide her enough support that she can keep doing what she does best, while staying warm and fed. Egypt Dior forever and ever <3

Original post on 4/30/2022:

Miss Egypt Dior is a Black, queer, trans woman, Bed Stuy native, dear friend, and avid Mortal Kombat fan, who was incarcerated for nearly 20 years - two decades. For many of those years, the state kept Egypt captive inside Rikers Island (known familiarly as "Torture Island"). Released on parole in 2018, beloved Egypt has since had every conceivable obstacle thrown into the path of her journey toward a stable life.

While details will be limited to protect Egypt's dignity and privacy, the severity of her support needs cannot be overstated. The government cut off Egypt's access to food stamps and other survival "benefits" at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, and Egypt is unable to retain a job due to a severe spinal injury, chronic pain, and the relentless discrimination she has endured as a Black, trans woman who was confined by years of carceral violence. Further, Egypt faces the imminent possibility of having her housing seized from her within the year, with the state offering no alternatives to houselessness. Egypt continues to survive through her own determination and the efforts of a select number of loved ones, who cannot sustainably remain as her sole source of support.

All reparations and related contributions will go directly to Miss Dior, and will contribute toward her continual access to:

-Food
-Disability-related medical supplies
-Transportation to/from occupational therapy and other necessary medical appointments
-Ongoing rent for a new apartment when her current housing voucher expires

For those who would prefer to send directly to Egypt, her payment information is as follows:

Cashapp: $EgyptDior
Venmo: Egypt-Dior-2
Paypal.me/EgyptDior

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One-time contributions will be lovingly accepted, but recurring contributions are a necessity that has been requested of the community for years now. We ask for your support with the utmost love for Egypt, gratitude for community power, rage toward the state, and appreciation of our collective, continual obligation to support and pay reparations to Black trans women everywhere.

With love,

friends of Egypt

Miss Egypt Dior Deserves to Survive and Thrive!

By Sylvie Fried

Miss Egypt Dior Deserves to Survive and Thrive!

Beloved, formally incarcerated, disabled Black trans community member in urgent need of funds for food, transportation, and medication.

Team Members