Dear Not Provided,
For the last several years, Supreme Court decisions have cast long shadows in June. Impacted communities, who are increasingly forced to defend rights secured during the civil rights era and even their own existence, have endured a roller coaster of emotions for several Junes in a row. This term, we breathe momentary sighs of relief as the justices preserved access to mifepristone and to abortion in medical emergencies based on technicalities, only to have the implications of presidential immunity bring more dread.
Yet as we enter the July 4th weekend, it’s important that we remember that our nation’s courts only define what is legally permissible in the moment. The freedoms we currently hold have only been secured because people have been willing to act beyond – and put resources toward -- what they can see to make real the possibility of a better world.
In the face of administrative hurdles and legal threats, civic engagement groups are building power locally, on the frontlines of challenges to democracy. Two years after Dobbs gutted constitutional right to abortion access, organizations are reinventing themselves so that their clients recognize that reproductive justice is still accessible. All over the country, movement groups’ creativity and optimism are lighting the path to freedom again, if the sector has the courage to follow.
Philanthropy has and continues to seed the just and inclusive world we all deserve to live in. Funders cannot lose heart in this moment. Even the most foundational court decisions have shifted in the face of a determined community. Investments should not be solely shaped by risk-averse general counsels, but the possibilities of a better tomorrow.
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Marginalized BIPOC immigrant communities are frequently frozen out of, or invisible in, civic life which severely reduces their ability to protect themselves and to advocate for change that would improve their quality of life. This exposes BIPOC immigrants to daily threats to their wellbeing which include the omnipresent risk of deportation, racist discrimination, and exploitation and makes them vulnerable to being scapegoated for society’s woes.
Florida Immigrant Coalition (FLIC) utilizes civic engagement work to address root causes of BIPOC immigrant marginalization. They do so through following up with constituents they helped naturalize and registering them to vote, providing them a political education, and organizing diverse immigrant and pro-immigrant communities to fight for immigrants’ rights in Florida including running Get Out The Vote and issue advocacy campaigns. FLIC identifies and cultivates community leaders through their engagement ladder where volunteers progress from first time contacts, to volunteer organizers/team leaders, to running their own civic engagement campaigns in their own communities.
FLIC services offer free, high quality legal aid to immigrants including helping complete their naturalization, TPS, and work permit applications; providing free legal consultations; and offering Know Your Rights workshops that explain what rights both documented and undocumented immigrants hold in the U.S.
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Nonprofits calling for a ceasefire in Gaza are reporting threats to their funding, leading to a chilling effect in relationships between grantmakers and grantees. Speaking to funders considering pulling grants over public statements in support of a ceasefire, Timi Gerson, Vice President and Chief Strategy Officer at NCRP said, “Don’t cut off people who are otherwise aligned.” In a moment when authoritarianism is on the rise, movement groups fighting for democracy and the funder partners who support them are both speaking out to urge the philanthropic sector to recognize the larger threat at hand and hold on to the relationships cultivated. “Funders face less risk,” she said, “but eventually they’re coming for all of us.”
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The U.S. Court of Appeals in a 2 to 1 vote held that the 501 (C) (3) Fearless Foundation could no longer run its Striver’s Grant Contest which awards 20k to Black women-owned businesses. American Alliance for Equal Rights’ lawsuit argued that the contest violated section 1981 of the Civil Rights Act of 1866, which says all persons have the same rights to create and implement contracts. The court viewed that the exclusion of people who are not Black was a ‘textbook violation’ of equal rights and perpetrated racial discrimination.
What some see as an extension of last summer’s SCOTUS affirmative action decision, this attack on philanthropic missions creates a scary precedent. The court noted the 501 (c) (3) status of American Alliance but not for Fearless Fund. “It’s both ironic and disturbing that a Civil War-era law intended to protect Black Americans from economic exclusion has been converted into a statute that could prevent charities from addressing those historical inequities, “says, Chronicle author Roger Colinvaux.
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Mifepristone SCOTUS Decision
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SCOTUS ruled in June that Mifepristone, the abortion pill commonly used in medication abortions would remain legal. The court ruled that the alliance of conservatives challenging the legality of the medication did not have the necessary legal standing.
Skye Perryman, Democracy Forward President and CEO responded to the slight win in reproductive access by saying, “Despite today’s decision, this case isn’t over. Extremist Attorneys General in Idaho, Missouri, and Kansas continue to pursue this same case in front of Judge Kacsmaryk with the goal of restricting access to mifepristone.”
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The Reality of Abortion Clinics Post Roe
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June marked two years since the Dobbs decision overturned Roe – the US constitutional right to an abortion. At least 65 independent clinics have closed completely or stopped providing abortion care since 2022. People traveling through state lines to receive abortion care has doubled since 2020 – nearly one in five of those traveling did so in the first half of 2023. As restrictions to bodily autonomy rise, independent clinics continue to be a backbone of reproductive justice, in spite of many hurdles. In areas of the country most affected by the Dobbs decision, clinics have shifted their focus to other forms of healthcare, giving clients the dignity they deserve and attacking disinformation from crisis pregnancy centers.
Robin Marty, author of Handbook for a Post-Roe America, shared that the Dobbs decision had done more than just eliminate healthcare. Marty shared, “What people don't understand about Dobbs is that it hasn't just eliminated abortion access, it has eliminated any ability for doctors and patients to be able to trust each other from here on out. And it in fact has kind of destroyed the trust in medicine.”
Erin Grant, co-executive director of the Abortion Care Network cited a report from the National Abortion Federation which “found a ‘sharp increase’ in violence and disruption at clinics nationwide including arsons, burglaries, death threats and invasions in the year Roe v. Wade was overturned.”
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SCOTUS Sides with Republics Voter Gerrymandering
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In late May, in a 6-3 vote SCOTUS ruled in favor of South Carolina to use a congressional map that had been considered unconstitutional racial gerrymandering. This victory secures the Republican’s ability to control South Carolina’s First Congressional District, which is effectively “bleaching of African American voters.” While it is not an exact match, this decision follows a strikingly similar outcome from last year when the court ruled that lawmakers in Alabama could thin out Black voter power.
In dissent, Justice Elena Kagan, Justices Sonia Sotomayor and Ketanji Brown Jackson shared, “It is to respect the plausible — no, the more than plausible — findings of the district court that the state engaged in race-based districting. And to tell the state that it must redraw” the challenged district, “this time without targeting African American citizens.” If the saying goes, the way the south goes, so goes the nation – what does this mean for our democratic right to vote nationwide?
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Don't Water Down Juneteenth
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This past June 19th marked this year’s Juneteenth celebration. Designated as a federal holiday in 2021, Juneteenth has been celebrated in Texas for over 150 years, marking the day enslaved people in Galveston, Texas, were declared free, two and a half years after the Emancipation Proclamation.
Executive Vice President of Race Forward and NCRP board member, Eric Ward reminds us that as our democracy faces attacks from every angle, we have a responsibility to ensure Juneteenth does not become a watered-down holiday. Instead, Ward says, “While recognizing our progress, we must also get serious about the ongoing efforts to roll back democracy—from limiting education on accurate history and diverse perspectives in schools to undermining voting rights and access.”
As Ward recounts his family history from the Civil War to the Great Migration, he reminds us that Juneteenth is celebrated not just as a historical event but as a reminder of ongoing struggles for democracy and civil rights, juxtaposed against current challenges such as voter suppression and systemic injustices like police violence. It is a call to action to protect and advance the hard-won gains of the past, emphasizing the need for inclusive democracy and social justice movements to achieve true equity and freedom for all.
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Funders for LGBTQ Issues Pride Resources
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As we look back at pride month, many in philanthropy are asking of themselves and thought leaders, what is the role that philanthropy must play in the fight for queer and trans rights? In Funders for LGBQT Issue’s latest episode of the podcast, Justice Ain’t Cheap!, three leaders in the fight for LGBTQ equity in the South join in conversation to discuss just that. Those leaders are Funders’ President Saida Agostini-Bostic joins Shaena Johnson, Out in the South (OTS) Project Director, board member and OTS steering committee member Kelli King-Jackson, and Grantmakers United for Trans Communities (GUTC) Fellow Míchél Macklin of Texas Pride Impact Funds.
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LGBTQ Grantmaking by U.S. Foundations
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To track the level of philanthropic support for LGBTQ communities and causes across the United States, Funders for LGBTQ Issues has released the 2022 Resource Tracking Report: Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and Queer (LGBTQ) Grantmaking by U.S. Foundations. The 20th edition of the annual Resource Tracking Report not only provides a snapshot of funding for queer communities and issues across the country in 2022, it also reveals gaps in funding and highlights opportunities for US-based foundations to make strategic funding decisions that best support domestic LGBTQ communities and issues within the current philanthropic and political landscape. This report also offers timely analyses of trends that are relevant to the needs of intersecting social justice movements and identifies ways that the philanthropic community can advance our collective liberation.
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Other Media Catching Our Eye This Month
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Supreme Court upholds gun ban for domestic violence restraining orders, WaPo
Progress Is Won by Pursuing Justice, Not Waiting Patiently in Line, The Chronicle
Nonprofits Are Taking a Stance on Gaza — and Paying the Price, The Chronicle
Where Strategic Philanthropy Went Wrong, SSIR
New report finds increase in nonprofit trust in 2024, Independent Sector
What two years without Roe looks like, in 8 charts, Vox
Supreme Court Overturns Chevron Doctrine: What it Means for Climate Change Policy, Inside Climate News
How Movement-Accountable Intermediaries Can Change Philanthropy, SSIR
Careful What You Wish For: House GOP Pushes Philanthropy Reform to Punish Liberal Donors, IP
Commentary: To build trust in philanthropy, nonprofits and funders must intentionally connect, LA Times
Effective Altruism Is Flawed. But What’s the Alternative?, NYT
Harvard Says It Will No Longer Take Positions on Matters Outside of the University, NYT
As Court Rules Against Fearless Foundation, Council, Independent Sector Stand by Commitment to Funders’ Right to Give in Line With Values, Independent Sector
How grassroots climate activists are taking on Big Tech, Heated
Disinformation Poses a Serious Threat to Democracy. Here Are Some of the Funders Pushing Back, IP
Wrestling Out Loud: Faith and Liberation, Faith in Public Life Action podcast
Melinda French Gates: The Enemies of Progress Play Offense. I Want to Help Even the Match, NYT
Opinion: Women workers challenge gender-based violence and climate risk, Devex
Faith-Based Groups That Assist Migrants Become Targets of Extremists, NYT
President Biden signed an EO to temporarily seal the U.S. border, NCRP Tweets
City sued for paying hundreds of Black residents $25,000 in reparations, WaPo
California budget includes $12 million for reparations for Black residents, WaPo
To Abolish Poverty, We Need a Fully Funded, 21st-Century Child Care System, Foundation for Child Development
Ayana Parsons, co-founder of Atlanta’s Fearless Fund, steps down as COO, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
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