CALL-TO-ACTION: How To Help Puerto Rico after Hurricane Fiona

This blog post is a Call-to-Action directed toward my international audience to help Puerto Rico after Hurricane Fiona.

You’ll notice there’s no new recipe this week, and there’s a reason for that. Last weekend, Puerto Rico went through yet another atmospheric disaster, and we’re currently struggling to recover. In five years we have dealt with: a category 5 Hurricane María, multiple earthquakes, political instability, a pandemic, multiple floodings, multiple-day blackouts, forced privatizations, and now, a category 1 Hurricane Fiona. All of these events have made it incredibly hard for Puerto Rico to recover, especially on the southwest side of the island which is often neglected by our local government.

On Monday, our governor stood up in front of cameras and told the world “to not send help, we don’t need it”, all while hundreds of people lost their entire homes and belongings. Today, almost a week after Hurricane Fiona, anywhere from 65%-50% of the population still doesn’t have electricity and access to potable water; I still don’t have electricity. This percentage can dramatically increase at any given time because our electrical grid is insanely fragile and just about anything can make us go into an island-wide blackout.

There hasn’t been a lot of international coverage; while we were going through a hurricane on the anniversary of another, the world chose to look towards an irrelevant monarchy. That’s why with this post, I’m hoping to amplify the voices of local organizations that need donations for the affected communities. Despite what our governor said, many people outside the metropolitan area of the island, are in desperate need of help; I saw it with my own eyes yesterday. 

Today, I choose to use this platform to ask you for your help, in any way you can. Below you’ll find a list of different local organizations, foundations, and projects that are currently receiving donations and mobilizing efforts to aid in the most affected areas by Hurricane Fiona. But first, some things to keep in mind:

• You do not need to feel obligated to speak up on certain topics, and sometimes it’s best if you don’t feel like you have all of the information at hand. However, consider using your platforms to amplify and uplift calls to action through shares.
• Listen to us on the island. When we say “do not donate to the government”, we really mean it. This is due to multiple scandals after Hurricane María, where our government hid and hoarded supplies until they expired and were unusable. 
• Other organizations to NOT donate to: crypto/NFTs-foundations (especially Brock Pierce), banks, health plans, The Red Cross, The Salvation Army, Foundation for Puerto Rico, Integro Foundations, Unidos for Puerto Rico, ACT 20/22 Foundations, etc.
• Donate to local, non-profit, and registered organizations, that have social evidence of their work. I will list the ones I’m most familiar with below.

Who to donate to in Puerto Rico after Hurricane Fiona:

Organizations I know first hand:

• Renacer Social: A non-profit organization dedicated to providing Supervised Visitation, Family Counseling, and Parental Education in a safe and friendly environment. They are also very dedicated to community service as a social service organization. My partner and I are working closely with this organization to help bring visibility to and distribute supplies to affected communities. Donate via PayPal here.
• Comedores Sociales de Puerto Rico: A non-profit organization that seeks to eradicate hunger in Puerto Rico through collective work strategies and the socialization of resources in favor of the majority of our people. Donate via PayPal here.
• Centro de Apoyo Mutuo: A volunteer-led food distribution initiative serving breakfast and lunch on Mondays, Wednesdays & Friday to approximately 100 to 250 each day. Donate via PayPal with: [email protected] 
• Iniciativa Comunitaria: A vanguard organization that works in solidarity with the community in its development and transformation. They advocate for the recognition and respect of the fundamental rights of the community and its individuals. They also propose and promote an inclusive public policy that is sensitive and committed to achieving quality of life, and healthy/harmonious coexistence, especially for human beings who suffer social exclusion. Donate via PayPal here.
• Revista étnica: This is the first and only magazine and multimedia platform dedicated to making visible, amplifying voices, and positively representing Afro-Latinx communities in Puerto Rico. Its platforms provide a presence primarily for women, but also for Black and Afro-descendant men, Afro-Latinxs and the LGTBTQIA+ community, and other groups that are commonly excluded by racial and gender discrimination. Together with El Ancón de Loíza, they are helping Loíza, a predominantly Black community in Puerto Rico that was unfairly excluded from the emergency declaration. Donate to Revista étnica here, and donate to El Ancón here.

Other organizations:

• Taller Salud: A feminist, community-based organization dedicated to improving women’s access to health care, reducing violence in community settings, and promoting economic development through education and activism. Donate via PayPal here.
• Colectiva Feminista en Construcción: A political organization that draws from the legacy of black and decolonial feminism, founded in 2014; it brings together feminists from the intersections of gender, race, class, and sexuality in the struggle against capitalism and patriarchy. Donate via PayPal here.
• Casa Pueblo de Adjuntas: A community self-management project committed to appreciating and protecting natural, cultural, and human resources. The community organization, which recently celebrated its 40th anniversary and was born to fight against mining exploitation, is now leading a solar energy project that aims to be a local and international reference. Donate via PayPal here.
• HASER Cambio: They partner with community-based organizations to build a network of projects that promote the social well-being of communities across the archipelago of Puerto Rico. We are building a network of local actions that share resources and responsibilities to stimulate equity and quality of life. Our services strengthen these actions by working with individuals, groups, and organizations looking to achieve change in alignment with our mission. Donate via Fundrazr here.
• Ayuda Legal Puerto Rico: An initiative and virtual tool that seeks to promote access to justice in Puerto Rico through open and accessible legal information. Through education and community legal work they promote that individuals, groups, and communities know and develop the necessary skills to claim their rights. Donate via PayPal here.
• AgitArte: An organization of working-class artists and cultural organizers who work at the intersections of race, class, gender, sexuality, and ideology. Through a praxis of cultural solidarity, creative process, and popular education, we initiate and facilitate arts and cultural projects with grassroots communities that contest U.S. cultural hegemony and propose alternatives to existing systems of oppression. Donate to AgitArte here.
• Brigada Solidaria del Oeste: Solidarity brigade for reconstruction, debris collection, and to promote a recovery process after Hurricane Maria on the west side of the island. After the hurricane (2017), they were able to rebuild 14 affected residences and currently continue working to enhance the development of our communities through mutual support, art, music, and activism. Donate via PayPal with: [email protected] 
• Techos Pa’ Mi Gente: A non-profit organization dedicated to the construction of decent roofs and rehabilitation of homes in communities affected by natural disasters. It contributes to improving the quality of life of the individuals who make up these communities. It promotes self-management and provides training in basic construction skills to build resilience. Donate via PayPal here.
• Fundación de Mujeres en Puerto Rico: The Foundation for Women in Puerto Rico (FMnPR), founded by women in the diaspora and Puerto Rico, promotes social justice and supports the economic/physical security, health, reproductive autonomy, and overall empowerment of women, girls and gender-fluid people in Puerto Rico. Donate via Give Lively here.
• Centro de Periodismo Investigativo (CPI): It was created as an instrument to promote and defend this right in two equally important ways: journalistic investigation and litigation. From its editorial component, with a group of journalists dedicated to research that produces free reports through its website. Through litigation, they educate and orient the communities so that they know the processes and mechanisms for claiming information and can carry them out on their own. Donate through their website here.

Animal-focused non-profits:

Abandoned/street animals need our help more than ever after Hurricane Fiona. Many lived in the hurricane outdoors, and many live in areas that flooded.

• Habitat: Mochileando and Mochileando 100×35 Foundation together with the San Francisco de Asis Animal Sanctuary and the Caribbean Manatee Conservation Center, join forces to rescue abandoned animals, create a foster-to-adoption program, and rescue/rehabilitate manatees in Puerto Rico. Donate to the animal sanctuary through PayPal: [email protected]. Donate to save the manatees here. 
• Save a Gato: Save A Gato manages the colony of cats on the Paseo del Morro and the rest of Old San Juan. We manage them through T/N/R. This stands for trap, neuter, and release. Cats are first trapped, then with the help of local vets, we are able to neuter, vaccinate, and de-worm the cats. The cats are then returned healthy to the Paseo to lounge and sunbathe on the rocks. Save a Gato also offers the option to adopt cats while they are going through the T/N/R process. Donate via PayPal here.
• El Foster Club: A non-profit dedicated to finding foster homes for rescues and placing them in forever homes in 🇵🇷 or abroad. Donate via PayPal here.
• Wepa Satos: A rescuing, feeding, and finding forever homes non-profit organization led by our favorite China-Boricua, Señorita Yanyi. Donate via PayPal here.

Some agricultural initiatives:

Here’s a list of some agricultural initiatives that need your help after loosing crops due to Hurricane Fiona.

• Finca Flor del Ají: Agroecological practice farm in Corozal, Puerto Rico that provides quality products, transmits its agricultural experience, and shares the love for the land with everyone. Among their products, you will find pickles, jellies, fresh juices, fruits, and vegetables from the farm. Donate via PayPal with: [email protected] 
• Semillas Germinando: This movement sources seeds from other parts of the world in order to plant them in Puerto Rico. After the hurricane, their mission is to impact some farms and help local farmers by donating seeds to re-establish their crops. For donations contact Rey Abner Soto directly through @donmarktub on Instagram.
• Instituto para la Agroecología: It arose as a result of an immediate need to support agroecological collectives in Puerto Rico, providing access to administrative services, financing, physical resources (land, laboratories), and training for the development of diverse skills. Donate via PayPal here.
• Fundación Bucarabon: A community activation and local development organization, aimed at offering education and services to farmers and women in Maricao and surrounding areas. This initiative arises as a result of the closure of the Francisco Vincenty Second Unit School in the Bucarabones neighborhood, Maricao town. Donate via PayPal here.
• Para La Naturaleza: They facilitate transformative experiences in nature, conserve land of high ecological value, encourage responsibility for our natural resources, and promote public policy for their protection. Donate here.

Some notes:

• Many of these organizations work together and collaborate constantly.
• This is in no way, shape, or form an exhaustive and complete list; there are many other organizations that are also working hard.
• If you know of a coffee farm that needs help either collecting coffee or cleaning their harvests, let me know and I’ll add them to this list.

If you have any questions, feel free to reach out at any time.