Resources We Love

While you wait on us to open our doors, take a look at these free resources we ❤

DISCLAIMER: This list includes and will continue to add as many resources as we can find that might be helpful. Because the infrastructure to make abolitionist resources sustainable is limited, most of the resources we share here are NOT abolitionist in nature, and don’t share the values of our project. We are sharing them in the spirit of harm reduction. Please take care to vet any referrals you choose to access or pass along.

IF YOU OR SOMEONE YOU CARE ABOUT IS AT URGENT RISK OF BEING HOSPITALIZED WITHOUT CONSENT, PROJECT LETS HAS A RAPID RESPONSE PHONE SUPPORT LINE TO HELP YOU GET HELP AND DEFEND YOUR RIGHTS. Text 401-400-2905 for urgent support with psychiatric incarceration/involuntary hospitalization. Hours of operation are: Monday-Saturday, 10:00 AM EST-4:00 PM EST.

In-Page links

Use this list of links to jump quickly to other parts of this page!

Things to read, print off, learn from, or otherwise check out on your own:

Everything Is Awful and I’m Not Okay: questions to ask before giving up

Wellness Recovery Action Plan (WRAP)

A Harm Reduction Guide to Coming off Psychiatric Meds

The Job Accommodation Network – A hotline / clearinghouse with all sorts of info about workplace accommodations for folks with legally documented disabilities in the USA

Email jo@samaritans about your problems, and a volunteer will write you back within 48 hours. They can’t trace your location and don’t call the cops.

Madqueer Resources – A website made by a good friend and ally doing national peer support work. Tons of articles, printables, and how-to guides.

Mad Maps – A guide to madness and oppression, developed by the Fireweed Collective (Formerly, the Icarus Project)

Organizing Guide for Psychiatric Survivors
The Plural Association / Power to the Plurals – online archive of resources and information by and for plural folx / people with DID/OSDD/Dissociative identities

Common mistakes we make when supporting others & what to do differently – A guide by Project Lets

Supporting a survivor of sexual assault

Let’s talk about it! A transgender survivor’s guide to accessing therapy

Self Care on the Inside – From Sylvia Rivera Law Project

Anti-Oppressive Facilitation for Democratic Process – From the Aorta Collective

Challenging Patriarchy and Sexism – From the Aorta Collective

Dismantling Anti-Black Bias in Democratic Workplaces: A Toolkit – From the Aorta Collective
A guide to fighting the hellish bastards that are intrusive thoughts
Unpacking Self Harm
National Empowerment Center
Non-Carceral Crisis Response Resource Guide (for providers who want to decarcerate their practice)

Real-Time Peer (and professional) Supports – Online / Remote

Nalgona Positivity Pride – Decolonial support for eating disorder recovery, centering racial justice and size positivity. Includes peer support and training for “professionals.”
Neuromancers (online, social media-based peer support)
Liberating Jasper – Peer support and online group therapy for folks navigating eating disorders and disordered eating
The Eating Disorder Foundation – Online support groups for recovery from eating disorders, disordered eating, and addictions
Peer Support Space – Creating peer support spaces, centering lived experience, & advocating for emotional justice
Sam & Devorah Trans Mentor Project – Internet-based mentorship program pairing trans/nonbinary youth and young adults w/ adult and elder mentors who meet virtually
Project Heal – Online peer support for eating disorder recovery
Warmline Directory – Warmslines are like hotlines, but you don’t have to be in a serious emergency to call… If you just need an ear, but aren’t at active risk for harm to self or others, warmlines are an alterative number to call, where a trained peer volunteer will listen and talk with you. This directory lists known warmlines across the United States.
7 Cups of Tea – A free online peer support platform
Project Lets Peer Mental Health Advocates – Matches you for 1:1 abolitionist peer support ❤
The Fireweed Collective – Peer support groups run by a national collective of mad organizers
Depression Bipolar Support Alliance (DBSA) peer support groups – Online and in person
Glimmer peer support and referrals to therapy for queer/trans/LGBTQIA+ folks
The Network La Red – Phone and virtual support (based on the East Coast) for queer and trans survivors of partner abuse
Wildflower Alliance Alternatives to Suicide – Online support groups (held over Discord) for people to talk openly about sucicidal feelings / ideation without stigma, shaming, or facilitators freaking out ❤

Real-Time Peer (and professional) Supports – In Person

Community Health Awareness Group – Harm reduction based support for people living with HIV, and those most at risk, with particular focus on folks in the sex trades and survival economies. CHAG also runs the city’s longstanding outreach-based needle exchange.
Alternatives For Girls – Supportive programs for women and girls (cis and trans) who have current or past experience in the commercial sex trades, regardless of the circumstances.
A Brighter Way – Support through relationship, by and for people with lived experience of incarceration, based in Washtenaw County, MI
Detroit Heals Detroit – A youth-led trauma healing hub on the East side of Detroit
Got Grief House – A nonprofit in Detroit run by therapists and peers. Offers free online and in-person grief support groups.
Open Arms grief therapy groups
Detroit Disability Power – Healing Circles, Dance
Avalon Healing Center – A nonprofit offering a range of individual and group, peer-led and clinician-led therapy and support spaces for survivors of sexual assault. Their services are tailored to Black women.
Depression Bipolar Support Alliance (DBSA) peer support groups – Online and in person
Suicide Attempt Survivors Support Group – For adults in Michigan, ages 18 an older
Blue Babies mentorship program – for youth/young adults who were formerly in foster care.

Funding for Therapy and Other Clinical Care

Beauty after Bruises fund for trauma treatment
National Queer and Trans Therapists of Color Therapy Fund for queer and trans BIPOC folks
Stand with Trans Therapy Assistance Program for trans youth and young adults in Michigan
Boris Lawrence Henson Foundation mental health grants for Black folk
To Write Love on Her Arms therapy fund

Therapy Directories

If you’re looking for a therapist, here are some trusted directories to check out. Please note most therapists are NOT abolitionists, and don’t share the values our project operates from. We’re sharing these to provide a resource to the community, but therapists in the State of Michigan are mandated reporters, meaning they are legally expected to violate your consent in certain circumstances. To learn more about your rights when receiving therapy, check out this breakdown of the Michigan Mental Health Code.

Therapy for Black Men – directory of therapists, and therapy scholarships (as avaialble)
Talkspace – Online therapist directory, includes therapists that will text with you
Therapy for Black Girls – directory of therapists, and a podcast
Inclusive Therapists – directory of therapists vetted for anti-oppressive values
Transgender Michigan’s affirming therapist directory – directory of therapists
National Queer and Trans Therapists of Color directory – directory of therapists
Latinx Therapists Action Network – Directory of therapists
Black Emotional and Mental Health Collective – Find a Virtual Black therapist, doula, yoga teacher, mediator and much more
Melanin and Mental Health – directory of therapists, general mental health resources
Boris Lawrence Henson Foundation – mental health resources and therapist directory for Black and Brown folks
Black Men Heal – therapist directory and therapy scholarships, as available
Therapyden – directory of therapists
Open Path – directory of therapists who offer sliding scale or pro-bono services
Clinicians of Color – directory of therapists
TruCircle – Directory of therapists
University of Detroit Mercy Counseling Clinic - Free in-person therapy with student therapists, based on income. Most student therapists provide short-term care.
Michigan Certification Board of Addiction Professionals – Find a therapist who specializes in addiction recovery support

Housing Supports – Specialized Programs for Youth

Detroit Heals Detroit – Sometimes offers short-term emergency shelter to youth under age 26
Ruth Ellis Center – Permanent Supportive Housing and Rapid Re-Housing Programs – Long term housing options for LGBTQ+/ queer + trans folks under age 30
Alternatives For Girls – Housing Stability Program – Long term housing options for youth age 18 – 24 (primarily for cis women, with limited space to accommodate their children)
Alternatives For Girls – Shelter / Transition-to-Independent Living Program – Short-term place to stay for homeless cisgender girls and young cisgender women ages 15 – 21, including limited space for youth between 18 and 21 years old who have children with them.
Federation of Youth Services – A Detroit-based nonprofit that provides longer-term housing support for youth experiencing homelessness, or who were in foster care.
Lighthouse of Michigan – The Sanctuary, A Step Forward, and the Graduated Apartment Program – The sanctuary provides short-term shelter for youth in a crisis, A Step Forward provides transitional living for youth ready to prepare for independent adult life, and the Graduated Apartment Program offers older youth a chance to receive support while preparing for full independence.
Family Youth Interventions – Macomb County-based nonprofit offering support to youth (ages 12 – 24) who are experiencing homelessness through emergency shelter and longer-term housing options.
Gateway Youth Services – Housing support for youth ages 12 – 24, based in Lansing, MI.
The National Runaway Safeline – A hotline you can call, 24/7, if you’re a youth who has run away or is thinking of running away. They aren’t trained to talk you into or our of anything, but they are mandated reporters. If you don’t give them identifying information, they will still talk to you and offer information for how to stay as safe as possible.

Housing Supports – Specialized Programs for Folks with Long-Term / Chronic Homelessness

Southwest Solutions – Long term housing options for adults with chronic homelessness, including options for independent living, including with/for folks living with active addictions to substances.
Cass Community Social Services – Long term housing options for adults with chronic homelessness
Jean’s Open Arms Transitional Living Program
Wayne/Metro Community Action Agency – An agency that provides a wide range of supports for low-income adults and families, including housing and other assistance
United Community Housing Coalition (UCHC) – Free legal assistance and resources for low-income Detroit homeowners and renters

Emergency Shelters – Places to Stay in an Emergency

Coordinated Assessment Model (Also known as: “The CAM Line”) – If you’re in need of an emergency place to stay, you can call the CAM Line, Monday – Friday during business hours, to request a referral to a shelter. Its a good idea to call CAM first if you think there is any chance you will want to go to a shelter, even if it’s not your first pick to do that. This is because most shelters in Detroit won’t accept you until you call CAM, and also CAM usually takes at least a day or two to identify a place for you. So if it’s early in the morning and you need a place to stay, calling and letting them know the situation can get that process started, while you spend the rest of the day trying to find other options. Calling CAM doesn’t normally activate any type of reporting system, and it doesn’t require you to go into a shelter. You should know that the CAM operators will call 911, and/or Child / Adult Protective Services if they feel there is immediate risk of you harming yourself or someone else, or if they suspect the abuse or neglect of a child or vulnerable adult. Some mandated reporters will make referrals to child protective services when they learn of minor children without secure housing, including heat, electricity, and running water.
Detroit Eviction Defense – These folks will organize to keep you from being evicted.
Detroit Rescue Mission Ministries – Emergency mens’ and womens’ shelters in Detroit
Operation Get Down – Emergency shelter for cis men and some other limited emergency mental health, addiction recovery, and related resources
Coalition on Temporary Shelter – COTS– Emergency mens’ and womens’ shelters in Detroit
Project NOAH– Emergency mens’ and womens’ shelters in Detroit
MCREST – Macomb County Rotating Emergency Shelter Team
Directory of Emergency Shelters in Oakland County
HomelessShelterDirectory.Org

Domestic Violence Shelters

Transition 1.2.3. – Detroit, MI
LaCasa – Howell, MI
HAVEN – Pontiac, MI
Turning Point – Macomb County, MI
First Step – Downriver / Wayne County, MI
Safehouse – Washtenaw County, MI
YWCA Interim House – Detroit, MI
Sunshine’s Always Brighter with a Second Chance – Detroit, MI
Michigan Coalition to End Domestic and Sexual Violence – Not a shelter, but providers many resources, legal help, and advocacy

Free and Low-Cost Primary Care

Ruth Ellis Center Health and Wellness Center – Clinic serving LGBTQ+ youth ages 13 – 30
Corktown Heath Center – Medical clinic serving adults, focused on LGBTQ+ care, HIV/AIDS care, and gender care
CHASS Center – Medical center that primarily serves immigrant communities, located in Southwest Detroit
Free & Charitable Clinics of Michigan
Huda Clinic Detroit – Free clinic in Detroit that also provides dental care
Street Medicine Detroit
Planned Parenthood of Michigan
American Indian Health and Family Services – Provides primary care and clinical therapy
Covenant Community Care – Free and low-cost primary care in Southwest Detroit. This is a faith-based (Christian) medical provider.
Ferncare – Free clinic run by students in Ferndale
Motor City Mobile Wellness – Our cooperative of healing practitioners operates outside of the medical industrial complex to address the spectrum of wellness needs of our communities.
Statewide database of federally qualified health centers (FQHCs) – FQHCs are primary care medical practices that get special funding from the federal government to provide primary care for free or at sliding scale rates, and are expected to provide high quality care, focused on issues health that commonly impact low-income folks, including mental health and dentistry.
Common Ground – Behavioral Health Urgent Care – Same day appointments with an emergency psychiatric provider who can help refill meds or provide other urgent, same-day care. Not suitable for ongoing psychiatric treatment.
HRSA Health Center Locater – Find medical centers funded by the federal government to provide care to low-income folks
313 Care Collective – Local street medics
GoodRx – Website with coupons and discounts for most popular medications
Medicine Assistance Tool – To locate resources for paying for medications
Support for caregivers, and resources to finance caregiving expenses
Gender Affirming Letter Access Project (GALAP) – A national directory of therapists who will provide a free assessment and letter for gender-related healthcare

Free HIV/STI Testing, Addiction Recovery, and Harm Reduction Support

Community Health Awareness Group – This org runs the city’s first needle exchange program, and can offer you free materials for safer injection, as well as safe(r) sex materials, free of charge
Unified – Free, confidential HIV/STI testing
Matrix Human Services – Free, confidential HIV/STI testing
Find Naloxone (the medication that can reverse the effects of opioid overdose) Near You
SMART Recovery groups
Recovery Dharma
Refuge Recovery
Michigan Certification Board of Addiction Professionals – Find a therapist who specializes in addiction recovery support
Tempest – Online peer support for and clinical treatment of alcohol addiction
The Fireside Project

or at any of the clinics listed above ^^^^

Rights and Advocacy

Disability Rights Michigan – To learn about and defend your right as a d/Disabled person
Equality Michigan – For LGBTQ+/queer/trans folks who have been discriminated against or experienced a rights violation
Guide to File a Report against a Licensed therapist, doctor, or other healthcare professional in the State of Michigan
To report a violation of your rights as a recipient of mental health services delivered by Wayne County (Wayne County Recipient Rights)
Detroit Justice Center – Abolitionist legal advocacy in Detroit
Detroit Area Youth Uniting Michigan – Regional student organizing group (K-12)
ElderLaw of Michigan – Legal assistance and rights advocacy for Michigan elders
Detroit Action – Black and Brown low- and no-income Detroiters fighting for justice
Student Advocacy Center of Michigan – Statewide advocacy by and for students directly affected by the school-to-prison pipeline, specifically serving Black and Brown youth, d/Disabled youth, and queer + trans youth
Michigan Center for Youth Justice
Sylvia Rivera Law Project
Michigan Alliance for Families – Statewide advocacy for k-12 students with d/Disabilities and their families/caregivers
482 Forward – Regional student-run organizing program
Young Voices Act – Michigan

Immigration Resources

Michigan Immigrant Service Provider Reference Guide
Detroit Hispanic Development Corporation (DHDC) Rapid Action Plan – Case management and other supportive resources for immigrants
International Institute of Metro Detroit
Washtenaw Interfaith Coalition for Immigrant Rights – Organizing by and for the Washtenaw County immigrant community
Michigan Immigrant Rights Center – Know Your Rights Training
Preparing Your Family for Immigration Enforcement – English
Preparing Your Family for Immigration Enforcement – Spanish
Preparing Your Family for Immigration Enforcement – French
Scholarships / Funding for Undocumented College Students
Sylvia Rivera Law Project’s Infographic – Systems of Inequality: Immigration + criminalization of trans people
Immigration Equality – For LGBTQ+ / queer / trans immigrants
Freedom House Detroit
ACCESS – Arab Community Center for Economic and Social Services has been serving the community for over 50 years with a broad spectrum of social services. Although they primarily serve the Arab-American community, their services are often available for immigrants/migrants of other backgrounds, as well.

Restorative / Transformative Justice + Conflict Work Resources

Full-Spectrum Service Providers

Mutual Aid Groups

Food Resources

Support for Currently and/or Formerly Incarcerated Folkx

A Brighter Way – Support through relationship, by and for people with lived experience of incarceration, based in Washtenaw County, MI
Michigan Liberation
Prison Creative Arts Project
Michigan Women’s Justice and Clemency Project
Black and Pink – Support for LGBTQ+ / queer / trans incarcerated folks
Here to Help Foundation – Returning Hope to Returning Citizens Program

Employment Support

Other Resource Lists