Tiffany Fulton often goes by “Harlem Holiday” as a self-published author, crafting fictional narratives during the moments she has time off from her advocacy work. She stands tall in her full identity as a founder of Silent Voices United, Inc., which frequently leads the charge for social movements uptown.
“An average day for me is on my computer sending out letters and trying to have a voice…and to be able to sit down with my elected officials to hear the community’s concerns and to be fair with us,” said Fulton.
Surviving sexual assault in her adolescence fueled Fulton’s advocacy. Her start came while enrolled at City College. What started as a research assignment on child abuse laws became a lifelong passion: Silent Voices United, Inc. Fulton officially started the organization in 2008.
“We fight for those with no voice,” she said. “So as a child at 10 years old, I really didn’t have a voice. So since then, you know, I guess I’ve been on this mission, for justice for all, justice for those people with no voice. And I’ve been going ever since.”
But her work continues to expand. When she moved to Highbridge, Fulton witnessed how endemic youth HIV infections were in the Bronx neighborhood. So she started peer-to-peer advocacy, deploying her son to educate other youngsters on safe sex and STI prevention. Now back in Harlem, Fulton is on the frontlines of fights for affordable housing and against illegal smoke shops. And she’s currently working on getting thousands of brand new books out to the community.
Fulton attributes her tireless work to word of mouth.
“The chain reaction when people see you work or how hard you work for them, and they are so grateful and so thankful—next thing you know, they’re telling somebody what you did for them, and then now I’m helping somebody with something else,” said Fulton.
Tandy Lau is a Report for America corps member and writes about public safety for the Amsterdam News. Your donation to match our RFA grant helps keep him writing stories like this one; please consider making a tax-deductible gift of any amount today by visiting https://bit.ly/amnews1.
Author’s Note: A pronoun referring to Fulton was corrected in the first paragraph due to an editing error.
