I'm proud to be running in the Dublin Pride 5K Run this June. Participants are raising much-needed funds for three LGBT-focused charities. As a (...relatively) young member of the LGBT+ community, I owe so many of my rights to those who came before me - people who campaigned tirelessly for decades just to be allowed to exist as their authentic selves. While we have more freedoms today than at any other point in history, those freedoms cannot be taken for granted. LGBT+ rights (and particularly trans rights) are being actively eroded in the US by the Trump administration, and anti-trans voices have become disturbingly influential in the UK. In Ireland it is imperative that we protect our hard-won progress as well as continuing to push forward. Transgender Equality Network Ireland (TENI) aims to improve the lives of trans people through advocacy, education and support. They are particularly close to my heart due to their tireless advocacy for reforming Ireland's gender-affirming healthcare system. Having been through that system myself, I can attest that the process that patients are put through in order to access healthcare is humiliating, exhausting, and farcically inefficient. Advocating for the reform of our thoroughly inadequate gender-affirming healthcare system is just one example of the important work TENI does for the trans community. LGBT Ireland focuses on providing much-needed support and resources to LGBT+ individuals and their families around the country. Their helplines and resources directly assist thousands of people each year. Gay Community News (GCN) has been a key Irish outlet for LGBT+ community news since 1988. Established in the midst of the HIV/AIDS crisis at a time when homosexuality was still criminalised in Ireland, it has served as a valuable source of community unity and info through every stage of Ireland's LGBT+ rights movement, and continues to do so today. Any donations are greatly appreciated. Thank you for reading!