Gender Affirming Assistance Project (GAAP) is a community-based group in Katarokwi/Kingston that seeks to provide support to Two-Spirit, trans, non-binary and gender diverse community members

This grassroots collective was founded on the goal of reducing the barriers when accessing gender affirming care, rooting all of our work in an anti-oppressive, anti-racist and intersectional ethics of care. As such, we are working to provide Kingstonians with two vital services: gender-affirming apparel.

Gender affirming apparel: This portion of the project has the goal of providing affordable apparel, such as binders to Kingstonians. A binder is a compression garment that is designed to flatten the chest. They are used to reduce gender dysphoria in transmasculine people. However, for many people, binders can be financially inaccessible. Ordering a single binder online costs more than $50, before shipping and handling fees (https://www.gc2b.co/products/black-half-binder). Exchanging for a different size further increases the cost.

In addition to this, lack of access to a binder is a health risk since binding with compression bandages can result in injury due to their inaccessible cost. Additionally, binders are generally only available online, which also carries the risk of injury caused by using a too-small binder. We hope to solve both of these issues by offering a range of binders and other gender affirming gear on a sliding scale, between 50-100% of the original cost. These binders will be provided both by purchasing from suppliers via this funding and through donations by those who have binders they are no longer using.

We have also added an education element on how to properly and safely use gear and how to clean gear to the best and healthiest user experience.