Health Equity Alliance for LGBTQ+ New Mexicans

HEAL+NM is a community organization that works to achieve health equity and promote wellbeing for lesbian, gay, bisexual, two-spirit, transgender, gender nonconforming, queer, intersex, asexual, and pansexual (LGBTQ+) people through community organizing, education, advocacy, and messaging. Since 2003, we have gathered as a network of concerned community members to develop positive health messages by and for LGBTQ+ New Mexicans.

Our Mission

HEAL+NM’s mission is to address risk across social determinants of health for lesbian, gay, bisexual, two-spirit, transgender, gender nonconforming, questioning, queer, intersex, asexual, and pansexual (LGBTQ+) people and their intersectional lives. HEAL+NM works to advance education, research, and support for the health and wellbeing of LGBTQ+ people.

Our Work:

Bright Spaces, Welcome Places, a directory of mental health agencies that have LGBTQ-affirming policies

LGBTQ healthy relationships skills course

Community resource directory & newsletter

Community events and member meetings for LGBTQ+ community health

HEAL plus NM is committed to:

Connecting LGBTQ+ folks to health services and health resources

Dismantling the root causes of health inequity– intersecting oppressions in our institutions and social norms

Collaborating with LGBTQ+ organizations, public health institutions, and healthcare systems to address health inequities

Creating health messaging and curriculum for the LGBTQ+ folks

Educating and advising on pathways to health equity

Reducing the burden of commercial tobacco and nicotine on LGBTQ+ people

Cultivating LGBTQ+ leadership in public health

We’ve Transitioned:

We have recently transitioned to a new name, Health Equity Alliance for LGBTQ+ New Mexicans (HEAL+ NM–“Heal Plus”). For 17 years, we fought for our health under the name “Fierce Pride.” It was a name that reflected the ferocity of living out and proud in a homophobic and transphobic culture. We have always built coalitions and worked towards health equity, and we wanted our new name to reflect that. Since we started, the words that we use to describe our diverse genders and sexualities have expanded and evolved. The plus in our name and in our logo represents the expansive power of our community’s self-defining and self-naming as well as our intersectional approach to health equity.