Pride in Numbers, a statewide research project designed by and for two-spirit and LGBTQIA+ Oregonians, aims to document the needs and experiences of queer communities across Oregon, with a focus on centering the voices of rural residents and people of color.
Bianca Fox Ballara, who serves on the project’s community leadership team, said the initiative was built to counter research models she describes as “exploitative” or “extractive” toward marginalized communities. Organizers say the project relies on community leadership and blends surveys with art and storytelling to document experiences that traditional data collection often misses.
“We don’t want to sit around in fear anymore,” Ballara said. “We want to take action. We want to demonstrate that we are here and we’re not going anywhere.”
Ballara is of Taíno and Cuban heritage and identifies as two-spirit, a culturally specific term used by some Indigenous people to describe embodying both masculine and feminine spirits. She said her advocacy is rooted in both identity and place.
After growing up in Miami, Ballara moved to Southern Oregon more than 13 years ago and now lives in a forested area of Josephine County. She said rural communities are often overlooked in policy conversations that tend to center on urban areas such as Portland.
She said Pride in Numbers seeks to identify gaps in health care, housing and safety, particularly for rural and transgender residents. By pairing personal narratives with quantitative data, the project aims to equip advocates with information to push for policy changes.
“Regardless of where you live in the state, all two-spirit and LGBTQIA folks deserve to thrive,” Ballara said. “We deserve to have the support that we need.”
Guest
- Bianca Fox Ballara
