OUR MISSION

Initially founded in New York in 1999, VOCAL-NY serves as a model for the work to come with VOCAL-KY. Our campaigns have saved or improved the lives of hundreds of thousands of New Yorkers, and now we’re ready to help Kentuckians step into that same power.

VOCAL-KY is building a movement of low-income people dedicated to ending the AIDS epidemic, the war on drugs, mass incarceration, and homelessness across the country. We fight for systemic change rooted in justice, compassion, and love. We approach this work with a firm belief in reducing harm and ending stigma, and the knowledge that the issues impacting our communities are driven by institutional oppression, not personal failings.

Our Model

Our model of movement building draws inspiration from three traditions:

TRADITIONAL COMMUNITY-BASED ORGANIZING

DIRECT-ACTION AIDS ACTIVISM

BLACK-LED SOCIAL MOVEMENTS FOR RACIAL JUSTICE

Our STAFF

<strong>SHAMEKA PARRISH-WRIGHT</strong>
SHAMEKA PARRISH-WRIGHT
Director
Shameka is a long-time community organizer, successful project and campaign manager and social justice activist. She is formerly homeless, formerly incarcerated, and was the child of an incarcerated person. Her family has been impacted by HIV and the war on drugs. She recently ran for Mayor in Louisville, before starting at VOCAL-KY.
<strong>Brittany Morris</strong>
Brittany Morris
Harm Reduction Program Lead
Brittany is the Harm Reduction Program Lead at VOCAL-KY and brings both lived experience and deep empathy to her work. She has firsthand experience with substance use and homelessness and has been almost four years sober, getting sober the day she found out she was pregnant with her daughter. This pivotal moment reshaped her life and fuels her passion for harm reduction, meeting people where they are, and creating compassionate, judgment-free spaces rooted in dignity, hope, and real understanding.
<strong>Aravia Patterson, MPH</strong>
Aravia Patterson, MPH
Harm Reduction Drop-In Associate & Care Coordinator
Aravia Patterson provides compassionate, trauma-informed support to individuals navigating housing instability, substance use, and access to essential health and social services. With a passion for maternal health and women’s sexual and reproductive well-being, Aravia brings years of experience in community-based public health, health equity, and reproductive justice. She is currently pursuing her Ph.D. in Public Health Sciences with a specialization in Health Promotion and Behavioral Sciences at the University of Louisville.
<strong>JENNIFER TWYMAN</strong>
JENNIFER TWYMAN
Drug Policy Organizer
Jennifer comes to VOCAL after providing harm reduction services to some of Louisivlle’s most marginalized and underserved communities for the past 5 years.  Her drive and passion are fueled by her own 20 year struggle with chaotic substance use, followed by the last 12 years of using harm reduction in her daily life, as well as supporting her “sister” through 20+ years of incarceration. Jennifer has been laying the groundwork to build VOCAL-KY by organizing and building power with people who use drugs in Louisville.