Montana Immigrant Justice Alliance (MIJA) – Helena, MT
MIJA is a statewide non-profit organization working for immigrants rights. Montana has a rich history of immigration, but in recent years the contributions that immigrants have made to Montana have sometimes been overshadowed by negative stereotypes and false myths. MIJA works to educate the public about our migrant communities, and provide services to empower these communities. This proposal seeks to continue to grow MIJA and their immigrant network; to empower the immigrant community through leadership development, legal and service access, and educational development; to fight against the criminalization and systemic discrimination of immigrants; and to provide statewide leadership through coalition building on immigration issues. These efforts acknowledge the complex ecologies involved in immigrant justice work.
MIJA just won their lawsuit again LR 121. This is super exciting news that we should definitely be sharing with donors! Read more here
Montana Women Vote (MWV) – Missoula, MT
Montana Women Vote is a statewide coalition that works to engage, organize, and mobilize low-income women as informed voters, policy advocates, and community leaders. Montana Women Vote believes that civic action, policy change, and leadership development can together shift the balance of power and improve the lives of those in poverty. This grant will provide general support to allow Montana Women Vote to expand and deepen their economic justice work through community organizing, electoral engagement, and leadership development with low-income women in Montana. Montana Women Vote’s work covers multiple issues, including access to health care, voter rights, LGBTQ equality, and more. MWV and MHRN, both SJF grantees, and a number of other coalition partners, lost in their attempt to get Medicaid expansion on the ballot in MT this year. They were unable to collect enough verified signatures to qualify. They are re-grouping and are optimistic about taking Medicaid Expansion to the legislature during the 2015 session. Medicaid expansion in MT would mean 70,000 more people insured. Read more here
Native Youth Leadership Alliance (NYLA) – Pablo, MT
The Native Youth Leadership invests in young Native American leaders to create culturally based community change. This valuable investment will consolidate NYLA’s growth in Montana over the past four years with 1) expanded resources available for NYLA Advanced Leadership Fellow Amy Stiffarm (Whiteclay/Blackfeet/Chippewa Cree) to take on an organizational leadership role 2) NYLA fellow leadership and community organizing seed funding 3) relationship and network building resources.
These grants are a result of the hard work of our 2014 Montana Giving Project who participated in a five month process where they learned about social justice philanthropy, grantmaking, and fundraising. To learn more about Giving Projects, and how to get involved contact us at info@socialjusticefund.org / 206.624.4081
About the 2014 Montana Giving Project:
Ten members kicked off the year in February with a film screening and outreach event during the Big Sky Documentary Film Festival, met for a weekend retreat to set goals and build a shared analysis of race and class, made meaningful contributions totaling over $4,000, hosted two house parties, raised a total of $31,765, and site visited five organizations in four months.
Congratulations to our 2014 Montana Giving Project on all of your hard work and all you accomplished together!
Learn more about our Giving Project at www.socialjusticefund.org/giving-projects or call at (206) 624 – 4081