We have gone through lots of changes in the past year at The Des in our mission to connect you to the frontlines of the justice system. We built a completely independent platform and moved off Substack. This sets us up to expand and innovate.
In May, due to glitches with our new website, I stopped charging our current subscribers. Shortly afterwards, I was forced to take almost two months off due to health issues. I am the sole engine behind The Des, time wise and funding wise. Our subscriptions are our only source of revenue.
We believe strongly in our mission to use stories to break down the barriers of the justice system. As the founder, I have personally funded operational costs for the last two years and not taken a single paycheck and worked multiple jobs to enable me to work on this startup. This has been a project of passion that now must become sustainable to continue serving our readers.
We currently have two volunteer interns, including one based in D.C. We are back to sending our newsletter every Monday. We are publishing articles about the justice system every week. BUT I'll be blunt, we need your money.
Even a monthly subscription helps offset the cost. The more funds we raise, the more content we can include. And the more time I can take to apply for grants and foster paying partnerships which will in turn allow us to become more sustainable.
I am reaching out to ask you to restart or start a new membership by purchasing a subscription here: https://thedes1790.com/subscribe/.
If you would like to donate more money, resources or time, please reach out to me personally.
Forever and ever in gratitude.
Sincerely,
LJ Dawson
Founder of The Des