Change.org has long helped give voice to the voiceless. Now, the powerful petition platform is taking a significant step in supporting Black organizations in their fight for justice.
Change.org and New York-based community foundation, North Star Fund, recently announced more than 35 Black-led organizations across the United States that will receive grant funding from Change.org’s $5.5 million Racial Justice Fund. The Fund was created to redistribute money that came to Change.org connected to the Justice for George Floyd and Justice for Breonna Taylor petitions. The grant recipients work on the frontlines of Racial Justice to disrupt anti-black racism and empower communities of color.
“Creating a system that intentionally sought out organizations that were on the frontlines of this work was crucial in our grantmaking process,” said Jennifer Ching, Executive Director for North Star Fund in a news release. “We hope that our partnership with Change.org inspires other major corporations to be more conscious about creating equitable philanthropic practices that directly benefit a greater number of Black-led movements fighting for transformative change.”
According to statistics, a majority of philanthropic dollars go to causes that exclude Black, Indigeneous or People of Color communities issues like Racial Justice.
“Change.org’s goal with the Racial Justice Fund has always been to responsibly resource Black-led organizations and movements. This could not have been possible without the guidance of North Star Fund,” said Rashawn Davis, Associate Director of Change.org’s Racial Justice Fund. “This process has been a practice of solidarity and we hope to lay a foundation for long-term change and continued transformation within Change.org and around the world.”
Organizations from the Racial Justice Fund grants include Black Youth Project 100 (BYP100), The Marsha P. Johnson Institute (MPJI), BlackOUT Collective, Law 4 Black Lives and Freedom Agenda NYC.
