The Maine Justice Foundation has awarded grants from its Racial Justice Fund to seven Maine groups for 2022.

The fund aims to support Black, Indigenous, and people of color statewide to forge social, systemic, and economic solutions that will address racism and inequities in our culture, organizations, and systems, according to a news release from the Hallowell-based foundation.

“We are delighted to announce these Racial Justice Fund grants to seven inspiring organizations. The grants result from thoughtful consideration and hard work by the Fund’s volunteer Advisory Committee, the Foundation’s Board and staff, and generous donations by many corporate and individual leaders,” said Michelle Draeger, executive director of the foundation. “We believe these projects will meaningfully advance racial justice and equity for BIPOC Mainers.”

The foundation is issuing seven grants between $5,000 and $10,000 during this second year of grants, an increase in both organizations supported and funds distributed from the inaugural year.

The grantees and the projects supported are:

• Immigrant Legal Advocacy Project: To support a new fellowship opportunity for law school students who identify as immigrants or having lived immigrant experience.

• Greater Portland Immigrant Welcome Center: To support continued expansion of the Center’s iEnglish Project to provide more language training to non-English speaking BIPOC community members so they can join Maine’s workforce.

• In Her Presence: To support the Bridge to Career Fulfillment program, which aims to equip immigrant women with the tools they need to find fulfilling employment and achieve success in the workplace.

• Indigo Arts Alliance: To support artists in residence and community engagement for social justice in an effort to develop opportunities for social practice artists.

• Ladder to the Moon Network: To support Amjambo Africa in expanding its reach by increasing materials printed in seven languages and adding distribution at social service agencies, libraries, food pantries/soup kitchens, the shelter/hotel system, medical facilities and elsewhere.

• Maine Inside Out: To support arts and advocacy-based leadership development programs for system-impacted youth of color who have lived experience of Maine’s juvenile and criminal justice systems.

• Mindbridge: To support the Healing Racial Trauma Initiative to measure and make improvements on the quality of healing interventions and to redefine, destigmatize, and improve the accessibility of metrics and clinical methodologies.

Since the inaugural grant round, corporations, philanthropic leaders, and individual donors across Maine have given an additional $290,000, raising the fund to $644,000 to combat racial injustice and inequity. This growth has allowed the foundation to increase both the number of grants made and funds distributed in 2022.

The Maine Justice Foundation, founded in 1983 as the Maine Bar Foundation, is the state’s leading funder of civil legal aid and is committed to ensuring access to justice for all Mainers. To find the foundation online and support the Racial Justice Fund, visit justicemaine.org.

 

Check out other upcoming area events!

Copy the Story Link

Comments are not available on this story.