WHO WE ARE

IN FANCY WORDS

Asur New Mexico is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit located in Albuquerque, NM. We serve all women who spend the majority of their time physically outdoors in urban areas because they:

Are sex trafficking victims; and/or
Live significantly below the federal poverty line

As a result, they often:

Are homeless or precariously housed
Sell sex on the street occasionally or daily
Use substances
Struggle with mental or behavioral health issues
Are likely to be victims of domestic violence

We follow a harm-reduction philosophy by striving to reduce the harmful consequences associated with life on the street.

We make contact with the women using three different basic outreach models based on the mobility — or lack thereof — we employ during the encounter:

Stationary
Driving
Walking

During these outreaches we supply the women with the basic necessities of life — such as pads, tampons, and soap — and other items, such as our Bad Guy List. These models are changed as needed to preserve life during extreme weather emergencies, i.e. cold-weather and hot-weather outreaches.

HOW WE ARE ORGANIZED

When you do a web search for "nonprofit organizational structure" you will see words like "hierarchy" and "chain of command."

That's because the vast majority of nonprofits have a top-down system. This means the board of directors tells the executive director what to do, and they tell the program managers what to do, and they tell their staff what to do, and so forth. Then way down on the bottom rung are the volunteers.
But we are an all-volunteer organization, so there is no bottom rung. Only equal footing.

That has made us a "self-organizing" group, where our volunteers worked together to determine our structure.

A trio of women cuddle up in blankets while discussing the best way to handle a serial rapist who has targeted all three of them.

ADVISORY COMMITTEE

Our Advisory Committee is made up of volunteers who currently (or recently) live on the street and often act as Street Moms or Big Sisters to those still learning to navigate this environment.

The committee members provide their recommendations on how to approach complex issues, including how to handle serial rapists who will otherwise not face justice and how to increase the use of services among women on the street.

Advisory Committee Members: Gervette, Denae, Strawberry, JJ and Anastasia

WHO'S RUNNING THE PLACE

Board of Directors

Ilse Biel
Sophie Laborwit
Amy Malick

Christine has 15 years experience in managing nonprofits that work with women on the street. She was the executive director of Street Safe before founding Asur New Mexico in July, 2023.

She was drawn to the work in 2009 after the bodies of 11 women and girls were found buried on the West Mesa in Albuquerque, NM. All of the victims had been living on the street and doing dates between 2003-2004 when they were taken by a serial killer.

For six years, the police knew the women and girls were missing but said nothing. It wasn't until a femur was discovered in an empty lot that the general public was made aware of the disappearances.

Christine's rage at the women being completely ignored for all those years simply because they sold sex made her want to learn more about the women. And life on the street.

Executive Director

Christine Barber