Social Justice Funders SPOTLIGHT: The Astraea Lesbian Foundation for Justice • New York, New York

By Abby Alexanian assistance and its work to influence than giving a grant: because “it is With a goal of enacting long-term philanthropy. meaningful to bring people together across geographies and movements systemic change, The Astraea Lesbian Astraea has always operated on the and ideologies and identities, and Foundation for Justice is the only front lines of social change work for create really creative, collective, philanthropic organization dedicated LGBTQI people and communities of exclusively to advancing LGBTQI color. It often supports groups and innovative spaces for us to work human rights and promoting racial, initiatives long before their political together.” economic, social and gender justice and social justice victories catch the For Astraea, the grant-giving process in the United States and internation - eye of mainstream organizations. In itself also embodies the social justice ally. Astraea seeks to uplift 1993, for instance, Astraea gave a ethos of the organization. The Foun - communities living at the intersec - founding grant to a fledgling organi - tions of multiple marginalized zation dedicated to queer liberation dation designates the vast majority of identities, with an emphasis on and anti-oppression work in the its grants as unrestricted, which investing in nascent and emerging United States South. Supported by grantees can allocate for themselves groups, supporting movement- funding partnerships from Astraea based on where the funding is building work, and committing to and other key contributors, Southern - needed most. Prioritizing unrestricted long-term grantmaking partnerships. ers On New Ground (SONG) is now funds is a political commitment for In 1977, a group of women sitting one of the largest social justice Astraea, and helps build trusting part - around a kitchen table created the organizations in the South. nerships, supports grantee autonomy, and builds new systems of power. In Foundation. The founders were deter - Astraea’s charge, says Alotta, is to this sense, Astraea emphasizes mined to build and fund a women’s convene activists, build movements, relationships rather than transactions. movement that prioritizes the needs and bring together “multiple stake - of women of color and lesbians. holders investing in the same vision “And it’s movement-building, As Astraea grew over the past forty all from the different vantage points always,” Alotta says. years – now with partnerships in of where we sit.” This commitment is more than 96 countries – it has clear in CommsLabs (Communica - maintained the core values upon tions, Media and Technology Labs), The Astraea Lesbian which it was founded. one of the Foundation’s annual pro - Foundation for Justice grams, which convenes activists from “[Astraea’s] activity is to redirect Executive Director: disparate flows of capital,” says grantee partners around the world. Bob Alotta Executive Director J. Bob Alotta. “My CommsLabs provides a space for Website: job is to make sure that the money LGBTQI activists to share and learn secure, sustainable and holistic media http://www.disabilityrights - goes to where it purposefully isn’t and communications strategies, fund.org/ from where it purposefully is . It’s about redistribution of power.” strengthen digital security, and amplify their impact through the use n A small foundation that fundraises of technology. Committed to being Abby Alexanian every dollar it puts toward its mission, indigenous, CommsLabs is a partici - is a former research assistant at Astraea receives grants from larger patory design process in which the the Sillerman Center, has a foundations, governments, and both program is created by and for the background in domestic vio - large and small contributions from activists themselves. At CommsLabs, lence prevention and provision individual donors and families. In one organization’s database for track - of trauma-informed services. 2016, Astraea expended over $6 mil - ing anti-LGBTQI hate crimes in She holds an MBA in nonprofit lion in programmatic work, including Honduras became the inspiration for management and a master's in funding grants to 190 organizations in similar technological solutions in public policy from Brandeis 62 countries. It divides the resources other parts of the world. And this, University’s Heller School for evenly between grantmaking and says Alotta, is why Astraea’s ethos as Social Policy and Management. program support, such as technical an “activist funder” is about more Astraea Foundation GRANTEE SPOTLIGHT:

The Audre Lorde Project • New York, New York

The rise of stop-and-frisk and racially discriminatory The Astraea Lesbian Foundation for Justice has been instru - policing in New York City in the 1990’s meant that neigh - mental in supporting and sustaining the Safe Neighborhoods borhoods were less safe for the people who lived there. Campaign, created by the SOS Collective to build neighbor - This was especially true for queer, trans, and gender- hood safety using a community-led strategy to create nonconforming people of color. physical safe spaces. Through the Campaign, community members learn how to step up as bystanders and effectively The Audre Lorde Project (ALP) emerged in response to a rise interrupt conflicts without creating more violence or incar - in state violence, incarceration, deportation, and criminal - ceration. Page describes these safe spaces as “storefronts” – ization of queer, trans, and gender-non-conforming people bodegas, churches, small businesses – where ALP has run of color in New York City and particularly in central numerous trainings for community members so they are Brooklyn. Since its founding in 1996, ALP has been one of equipped “to intervene on state and interpersonal and hate the few organizing centers in the country lead by Lesbian, violence as it’s occurring on the streets of Crown Heights Gay, Bi, Trans, Gender-Non-Conforming, Two-Spirit people and Bed-Stuy, without relying on the police.” of color. (Two-Spirit is a term often used by indigenous people to refer to people “who cross social gender roles, A pivot for the Safe Neighborhoods Campaign came in gender expression and sexual orientation.”) The Audre 2014 when ALP conducted an evaluation that included Lorde Project is named for the Black lesbian feminist, poet, numerous conversations with community members. They and activist whose life and work embodies the intersectional discovered that as a result of gentrification and displacement fight for liberation at the core of ALP’s mission. “We started in central Brooklyn the community had lost most of its safe spaces. Realizing that gentrification and displacement are out as a community center,” says executive director Cara directly responsible for reduced safety for community mem - Page, “and have always been rooted in cultural work and bers, ALP re-launched the Safe Neighborhoods Campaign political organizing work that really seeks to transform the with an anti-gentrification component as an extension of the level of violence and systemic oppression impacting our existing anti-violence organizing. The revised campaign communities’ lives.” uses “old school” organizing methods, gathering in mem - A grantee partner of the Astraea Lesbian Foundation for bers’ living rooms and kitchens to identify and train allies Justice for many years, ALP’s programming includes political and community members to use verbal and physical de- education, leadership development, organizing 101 train - escalation tools. The program brings together members who ings, and a new program aiming to understand and integrate know their neighbors and identify them as people who wellbeing into political liberation work. With over 8,000 would be allies to a trans woman of color, for instance, who members, it has been member-led since its inception with a was harassed while walking down the street. staff of nine operating four programs. Building safety by building relationships, strengthening ALP’s early organizing work focused on trans justice – one community connections, and equipping members with tools of the few programs of its kind at the time. ALP, explains for interrupting and preventing violence and discrimination Page “held particular role and niche in building political is at the heart of The Audre Lorde Project’s work to trans - liberatory work in New York City” that focused on the form a culture of violence from the ground up. “Political conditions, survival and livelihood of trans and gender- organizing,” says Page, is “the centrifugal source of non-conforming people of color. transformation for our communities.”

In response to the rise in discriminatory policing in central Brooklyn, ALP launched a second organizing program in 2006, called Safe OUTside the System (SOS) Collective. The program shed light on the realities of being stopped by The Sillerman Center, based at Brandeis University, informs the police as a lesbian, gay, bi, trans, Two-Spirit, gender- and advances social justice philanthropy in the United nonconforming person of color in New York. At the time, States. We engage the philanthropic community through explains Page, there wasn’t an acknowledgement of “the convenings and presentations, publications, educational experience of being gender-profiled, not just racially courses, fellowships and scholarships, competitive grant profiled… and being targeted based on being homeless or contests and through collaborative partnerships with grant - living in a street-based economy with a target on your makers and social justice organizations. back.”