Grantmakers Concerned with Immigrants and Refugees

On Tuesday, April 1st, join our friends at Grantmakers in the Arts for “Rooted in Resistance: Cultural Self Determination in Border Communities.” Border communities stretching across Arizona, Mexico, and Tribal nations are sites of resilience, cultural sovereignty, and self-determination. As political discourse and policy decisions increasingly impact these regions, artists, cultural practitioners, and organizers reclaim narratives, assert community control, and transform power dynamics between funders and grantees. This program will explore the strategies and practices emerging from border communities to resist cultural occupation and realize liberation. Panelists will share how they are centering local knowledge, challenging traditional philanthropic models, and forging new pathways for long-term sustainability. Register below ?? https://lnkd.in/gbjzptQ3

On Monday, March 31st, Skylight Pictures & Engagement will host a virtual National Immigrant Solidarity Rally. As we collectively witness the inhumane treatment of immigrant communities under the new administration, many people are feeling anger and frustration. This event is designed to gather filmmakers, immigration rights leaders, digital humanists, students, and concerned community members from across the country to share experiences, strategies, and resources to inspire solidarity and take action. GCIR President Marissa Tirona will join the rally as a speaker. The rally will be accessible to both English and Spanish speakers. Skylight is also making their documentary BORDERLAND | The Line Within free to watch online from March 29th to 31st. The film follows the journeys of immigrants resisting and organizing for their human rights in the shadow of the vast border industrial complex, a multi-billion dollar business of surveillance, detention and deportation effectively embedding the border in every corner of our nation. You do not have to attend the rally in order to watch the film for free. Head to the comments for links to register for the rally and to access the film.

?? GCIR’s new episode of our Amplify Podcast is out now! In this episode, GCIR President Marissa Tirona interviews Maria Ibarra-Frayre, Co-Director at We the People Michigan. Maria shares how her personal immigration story led her to become an organizer, what building power means to We the People Michigan, why storytelling is an important tool in the fight for immigrant justice, how philanthropy can better support community organizing, and more. ??Listen to this latest episode at the link in the comments. #Podcast #CommunityOrganizing #Philanthropy

In a recent op-ed, our colleague Rana Elmir at Proteus Fund’s RISE Together Fund urges philanthropy to support African, Middle Eastern, Muslim, and Southeast Asian movement groups, which are fighting back against the current administration’s attempts to scapegoat these communities as “national security threats” and push them out of the country. “Ensure these movements are meaningfully funded and at the table,” Rana writes. “By funding African, Middle Eastern, Muslim, and South Asian groups meaningfully and across all foundation program areas—ideally with flexible, multiyear grants—these groups are better positioned to address the many threats they face.”

Immigrant women have always been on the frontlines of change—building movements, defending communities, and shaping history. This #WomensHistoryMonth, we honor their resilience and leadership! ???? GCIR’s Amplify series has featured the voices and experiences of many immigrant women leaders from organizations such as Khmer Girls in Action, The Coelho Center for Disability Law, Policy and Innovation at Loyola Law School, Western North Carolina Workers Center, Alianza Nacional de Campesinas and Skylight Pictures & Engagement. We invite you to learn more about their trailblazing work at the link below:? https://lnkd.in/g2JyBg2X

If you’re a national or place-based funder supporting immigrant communities in Texas, join us tomorrow (March 26th) for our next webinar, “Building Resilience for Nonprofits in Texas in a Shifting Policy Landscape.” Recent shifts in federal policies and funding have had far-reaching impacts on immigrant communities across Texas—and on the nonprofit organizations working to support them. In response to this rapidly changing landscape, service providers have had to adapt quickly, navigating increased demand, evolving legal frameworks, and growing uncertainty. GCIR, Houston Endowment, and the El Paso Community Foundation—in partnership with the Texas Immigration Law Council—invite you to join us for an intimate, funders-only conversation. We will learn how communities are adapting programs to meet immediate needs while pivoting to address emerging developments in this critical moment. We will explore the current challenges facing immigrant communities and the nonprofit sector in Texas, identify emerging needs, and discuss how philanthropy can play a meaningful role in advancing stability, safety, and support right now. Register below ?? https://lnkd.in/g8fJFEXm #Texas #ImmigrantCommunities #Webinar

On March 25, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced the revocation of humanitarian parole protections for individuals covered under the Cuban, Haitian, Nicaraguan, and Venezuelan (CHNV) parole program. Humanitarian parole allows individuals outside the U.S. to enter temporarily due to urgent humanitarian needs. This decision leaves over 530,000 CHNV parolees without their legal status and facing deportation starting April 24. "The mass revocation of parole status through the Federal Register notice creates unnecessary chaos and uncertainty for people who were granted humanitarian protection in the United States," says USCRI President & CEO Eskinder Negash. Read our full statement: https://bit.ly/4l1sbMM

GCIR President Marissa Tirona shared her insights with Inside Philanthropy about the urgent need for philanthropy to take bold action in support of immigrants and refugees as the new federal administration relentlessly targets migrant communities. “Philanthropic institutions have a lot of power and privilege, and I would encourage funders not only to mobilize resources within their own institutions, but to organize one another and use their platforms… to be a part of the resistance,” Tirona said. “We have such a large and active and engaged and committed sector of immigrant, migrant and refugee justice organizations who are doing the work, who are deeply invested in community, who are finding ways to work with one another, even in the face of the onslaught of harm and cruelty.” Read more: https://lnkd.in/gr3hD2sB

Last chance to register! Tomorrow March 20th, join GCIR and the Protecting Immigrant Families Coalition for an important and timely conversation about ways advocates are working to preserve rights and protections for immigrant children and families at this critical moment. One in four U.S. children lives in an immigrant family, and the next four years will bring unprecedented threats to their safety and wellbeing. The President has begun to militarize American communities to deport millions, an act of “mass deportation” that is traumatizing children living in immigrant families — 90 percent of whom are U.S. citizens. In Congress, proposals are swirling that would put food and healthcare programs out of reach for immigrant families while punishing states and localities that welcome immigrants. Families are being torn apart, and children are being uprooted from the only homes they’ve ever known or orphaned in their own homes. The chilling effect created by these actions is extending well beyond immigrant families and is already causing community-level trauma. The consequences of these threats will ripple across generations, shaping the country’s future for decades. Fortunately, there is an active, committed, and engaged network of organizations that are already mobilizing at the federal, state, and local levels. The Protecting Immigrant Families Coalition was founded to meet this moment, bringing together leading advocates for immigrants, children, education, and health. This webinar is an opportunity to learn more about how the Coalition is mobilizing its network to push Congress, engage local officials, and prepare communities to preserve rights and protections wherever possible. Register below ?? https://lnkd.in/gdSXQ_Xi #Webinar #ProtectImmigrants #ProtectKids

??? Mark your calendars! | Since #inauguration day on January 20th, the new administration has issued dozens of executive orders, policy changes, and other administrative #attacks on #immigrant communities. Join us on March 19th to: ??Learn about the current immigration policy landscape ??Make sense of the many federal announcements ??Understand the impact on immigration legal services ??Identify opportunities for philanthropy to bolster the capacity of legal services organizations to respond in the short & long-term Register: https://lnkd.in/gbjnHqvD