BIPOC Trans+ Leaders Circle of Care

Winter-Spring 2025 – with Richael Faithful

The Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) Trans+ Leaders Circle of Care is a new, virtual, spiritual support space running during Winter - Spring 2025.  

In the wake of moral panic, directly targeting trans-folks, particularly Indigenous and those of color– our bodies, our lives, our existence – our survival, our wellbeing, and our fortification is more important than ever. 

BIPOC Trans+ Leaders Circle of Care is for trans+ people who are community lighthouses, often in various roles, especially those who are in particular need for rest, release, and radical welcome. We are a refuge designed to provide deep care for the hearts, spirits, and emotions of trans+ folks who help others.

We welcome any BIPOC person of  trans-experience (including but not limited to trans-women/men, trans-feminine / masculine, non-binary, Two-Spirit, gender-expansive / fluid folx, and non-cisgender gender non-conforming folx). 

We also welcome people of any, multiple or no spiritual or faith tradition to join us. In this space, we will offer experienced facilitation, generative support through ritual, listening and visioning, along with practical care resources, in an affirming environment. 

Disclaimer:  We are not a substitute for therapy and not a substitute for professional mental health care.

Disclosure: Nothing to disclose.

Circle Details

Overview

As this is a curated and intimate experience, participants will be asked to apply. Applications will be accepted on a rolling basis through January 10, 2025.

This Winter - Spring Circle will have 8 bi-monthly meetings starting in February 2025, and ending in May 2025.

Schedule

• Facilitator 1-1s will take place between January 21, 2025 - January 28, 2025. 

• Sunday, February 2, 2025, 6pm - 8pm ET

• Sunday, February 16, 2025, 6pm - 8pm ET

• Sunday, March 2,  2025, 6pm - 8pm ET

• Sunday, March 16, 2025, 6pm - 8pm ET

• Sunday, March 30, 2025, 6pm - 8pm ET

• Sunday, April 13, 2025, 6pm - 8pm ET

• Sunday, April 27, 2025, 6pm - 8pm ET

• Sunday, May 11, 2025, 6pm - 8pm ET

Each participant who fully participates in the cycle will receive a $500 stipend for their time.

Participants are asked to miss no more than 2 meetings. No meetings will be recorded. Monthly feedback surveys are also required.

For applicants who are selected, they will have a 1-1 support and orientation meeting with the Circle Facilitator before the Circle begins and optional post-circle 1-1s as well. 

The Circle will be facilitated by Richael Faithful (they/them). They will be supervised by Rev. Mr. Barb Greve, himself a board certified clinical chaplain, and supported by the Braxton Institute’s teaching board members.

We are ready for what these times require of us, and we are prepared to sustain each other and our work in this generation. 

Please read the FAQs for anticipated questions. Learn more about the Braxton Institute and the Circle Facilitator, Richael Faithful. For more information, contact Richael at: rfaithful@braxtoninstitute.org. 

BIPOC Trans+ Circle of Care FAQs

What does Trans+ mean? 

Trans is short-hand for transgender. Trans+ is our expansive way of describing a very wide range of people of trans experience and/or many identities. We trust folx to self-select themselves without this broad definition. If you have further questions, please contact the Circle Facilitator. 

Who does BIPOC include?

We use the term BIPOC to describe any person whose racial and/or ethnic identities are Black, Indigenous, or People of Color. Another common term is “people of the global majority.” We appreciate the critiques of these terms, its US-centric use, and that defining BIPOC can be complicated. 

For the Circle’s purposes, we accept any person who experiences the world as an Indigenous or Person of Color and identifies as such in their day-to-day life. This can include multi-racial/mixed race folx, folx of the Latine/Latina/Latino diaspora, trans-racial adoptees, among others whose experiences don’t neatly fit into the limited BIPOC descriptor.

Our application asks for details about gender identities, racial and ethnic identities, and other social identities to learn further context about answers, to ensure it’s clear who the Circle is intended to serve, and to understand the makeup of the circle participants we select. However, we are starting with the assumption of good faith that only folx who identify as BIPOC or typically join BIPOC spaces will apply.

Can I apply for the Circle if I’m “queer” but not trans+? 

No. While we appreciate that many cisgender-queer folx are in serious need of support too, this space is for BIPOC people of trans-experience. We define trans-experience broadly to reflect the many gendered experiences we know exist, and, at the same time, we are creating sanctuary to people with more similar gendered experiences, and we want that container to be a meaningful one.

What kind of “helper” do I need to be to be considered for the Circle?

We define “helper” very broadly. Examples of helper roles include organizers, faith leaders, healthcare / healing providers, educators, facilitators, anyone in training for these or similar roles. Essentially, if you provide community or group support of any kind, we welcome you to apply. The Braxton Institute is known for its “heal-the-healer” model, so we intend to prioritize those who are community caregivers without reliable support systems of their own. 

Can you say more about “spiritual” support? 

We use spiritual to me the ways we tend to parts of ourselves that are about deepest essences, core beliefs, moral character, ethical lives, and that which relates to spirit, in the widest sense. Mainly, we distinguish this kind of support from therapeutic mental health or psychological support, which we are not trained to provide. We welcome any BIPOC trans+ person who wants to provide spiritual support, in a group setting, of any spiritual / faith tradition, or multiple, or none. The Circle Facilitator and Circle Supervisors are different traditions, and the Circle itself will encourage sharing about participants’ spirit-related worldviews and practices (if any). 

I have privacy and safety concerns. How will those be addressed? 

We created an extensive protocol, under the guidance of three medical doctors, and a board-certified chaplain, which we believe meets or exceeds  the clinical standards for working with people (called an “Institutional Review Board or IRB”).

In this protocol, we have significant provisions for confidentiality, safeguards against infiltration and surveillance, clear consent practices, and steps to provide different / higher care, if necessary. These provisions will be outlined upon Circle selection and reviewed at the support and orientation 1-1 with the Circle Facilitator. Any specific questions before selection can be sent to rfaithful@braxtoninstitute.org. 

What is the maximum number of folx who will be in the Circle?

No more than 12 folx will participate in the Winter - Spring Circle. 

What will happen with participants after this cycle? 

We are open to exploring with the group about which after circle support, if any, is needed, and what the Braxton Institute can provide. At the very least circle participants can consent to self-organizing after this circle’s completion. 

I can’t make this Circle. Will there be more for BIPOC trans+ leaders? 

We hope so. The Braxton Institute has held previous and simultaneous Circles of Care, although this is the first for BIPOC trans+ leaders. Please join our Mailing List for future announcements.