At the time of writing this, we’re officially past $211k, which my spreadsheet tells me is 120% of our original goal and which my heart tells me is an unbelievable, humbling experience.

This fundraising total is heavy with the weight of the trust you all have placed in us, with the knowledge that now, the funds have been more or less raised and it’s time to continue to do right by you, to do better, to keep going. Thank you, though, for this weight. We will proudly carry it.

Riese, when I asked her how she felt about our fundraising total with the vibe of a local reporter holding out a microphone, said:

“It feels incredible to see this outpouring of support for our ongoing existence — for helping us meet our goal in 4 days and then exceed it by over 36k! Your notes on the donor box wall are like blankets for our hearts, which do sometimes get a little cold. But right now we are warm.”

We’re fundraising until the end of the day today (or, realistically, until I get in tomorrow morning and shut everything off), so this is the very last period of time in which you can get those fundraiser perks and contribute to the total of this fundraiser, if you’re able to and want to contribute. Every dollar will go towards continuing to run this site, which, for the most part, means that your gay dollars will be used to pay our queer team to continue to make queer media.

Thank you for everything you’ve done and anything you continue to do.

Check Out the Fundraiser!

Some Facts About the Fundraiser (Which is Not Quite Over Yet!)

• There have been, so far, about 3,000 donations and, counted separately but still toward the goal, over 250 new A+ members. Thank you to everyone who has financially supported with a donation or signed up for A+ or both!
• It took us less than five days, from fundraiser launch on March 15th to March 19th for you all to get us to our initial goal of $175,000.
• Since then, within the two weeks, we decided to stick to for the fundraiser, you all have raised over $36,000 additional gay dollars for Autostraddle, bringing our total at the time of this writing to $211,126. That’s 120% of the original goal.
• Of the 250 new A+ members, the most popular level to join was also our most affordable, Cobalt, with 106 people opting to join for either $4 a month or $30 a year.
• 71% of donations to this fundraiser were $50 or less.

The Breakdown of Fundraiser Donations (Does Not Include A+)

It’s no Viv chart but it does tell us what we need to know.

This money represents so many things. It represents your trust, our ability to continue to pay our people and to pay queer and trans writers for their contributions to the site, to continue to pay on time. Being majority reader-funded also means that we can make editorial decisions with our community’s best interests at heart, not some corporate overlord. It’s cyclical. You’ve demonstrated, beyond our wildest dreams, that you think we’re worth keeping around, and in turn, we’re here and ready to work for you. I feel like you all have handed me something unbelievably precious to care for — a baby unicorn, a shooting star, a living breathing flame.

Last chance! For real!

For now, know that you are doing the impossible and that therefore that means it is, in fact, possible. Don’t let anyone tell you otherwise.

Love and love and love again,

Nico

Before you go! Autostraddle runs on the reader support of our AF+ Members. If this article meant something to you today — if it informed you or made you smile or feel seen, will you consider joining AF and supporting the people who make this queer media site possible?

Join AF+!