TS Madison Starter House Opens on Trans Day of Visibility, Providing Reentry Support for Formerly Incarcerated Black Trans Women
- Brandon Adams
- Mar 31
- 3 min read
Exclusive
“It’s not where you start, it’s where you go.” - TS Madison
Today, on the 16th annual Trans Day of Visibility, Atlanta celebrates the grand opening of the inaugural TS Madison Starter House! As a new Sisterhood Alliance for Freedom and Equality (SAFE) reentry home for formerly incarcerated transgender women, the new facility will welcome up to five women returning to the community following their incarceration.
“I didn’t want to sell this. I didn’t want to rent it out. I wanted to use this house as a conduit for girls to become great. I was a girl that was disenfranchised, homeless, and was in sex work. So many firsts have happened in this house. This house is so iconic!”, said TS Madison
The TS Madison Starter House is a member of A New Way of Life’s SAFE Housing Network, an international collective of 30+ organizations dedicated to offering reentry services to formerly incarcerated women. The SAFE Housing Network is working to decarcerate the US by providing a safe home to stay, helping them to heal from the trauma of incarceration, and empowering them to lead in the fight to end mass incarceration.
Since opening its first homes in 2019, the SAFE Housing Network has successfully housed more than 700 formerly incarcerated people and provided other reentry services to nearly 12,000 formerly incarcerated people.
“Black trans women are among the most marginalized and criminalized people in our society”, said Susan Burton, founder of A New Way of Life, CNN Hero, and a 2023 NBC News Inspiring America honoree. “The escalating vitriol against the trans community has emboldened acts of hate and discrimination across the country. Trans people everywhere are less safe today, and we need local government and law enforcement to take steps to safeguard the safety of the occupants of this home. By creating a space where they are not seen but supported, not just housed but honored, we are dismantling a system that has failed them for far too long.”
Led by media mogul and community advocate TS Madison, the TS Madison Starter House is a groundbreaking housing and empowerment initiative–designed by and for Black Trans women. This program is made possible through a powerful partnership with NAESM Inc., one of the oldest Black-led HIV/AIDS service organizations in the South.
With over three decades in service, NAESM’s infrastructure, expertise, and deep community trust form the operational foundation of the Starter House, ensuring it is not only visionary–but viable, trauma-informed, and sustainable.
“At NAESM, we’ve spent decades on the frontlines of HIV Prevention and care in the Black LGBTQ+ community,” said Dr. Quamina, Executive Director of NAESM, Inc.
“This home will be a critical intersection of reentry support and HIV Care–ensuring that Black trans women returning from incarceration aren’t just housed, but also have access to the affirming, life saving healthcare they deserve.”
Amidst Trump’s War on the Trans Community, the TS Madison Starter House is revolutionary in its mission: embracing, loving, and protecting Black trans women. The TS Madison Starter House is absolutely dedicated to creating a safe space for Black trans women in the South. By incubating hope, belief, and possibility, trans women are empowered to thrive authentically and navigate life with dignity, stability, and self-sufficiency.
“The question a lot of people will ask is why this space for what we’re trying to disrupt, which is homelessness…which is systemic oppression. The important answer to that is that a home is a disruptor to these experiences to our people.” - Dominique Morgan, TS Madison Starter House co-partner.
Watch the Grand Opening Livestream of TS Madison's Starter House below: