Scott announces “game-changing” $2 billion to support 300+ organizations, many immigrant justice groups
Philanthropist MacKenzie Scott announced a one-time $15 million donation to the Four Freedoms Fund (FFF), a collaborative fund dedicated to strengthening the immigrant justice movement. The news came as part of a recent round of funding totaling nearly $2 billion in gifts to social justice organizations. Rini Chakraborty, who leads the fund at NEO Philanthropy, calls this funding, “a game-changer for the immigrant justice movement.”
“We are honored and grateful to MacKenzie Scott for this generous gift that recognizes the leadership, power, and resilience of the immigrant justice movement and of BIPOC-led (Black, Indigenous, and People of Color) and migrant-led groups in particular. This gift will help turbocharge Four Freedoms Fund’s work to strengthen the power and capacity of the immigrant justice movement by investing in a robust constellation of immigrant-led organizations across the U.S.,” Chakraborty said. “We’re thrilled to see that—in addition to support for the Four Freedoms Fund—nearly 40 other immigrant rights organizations, partners, and grantees will also be receiving gifts. We hope this gift will inspire others to give generously to immigrant rights organizations, which are fighting for our collective future and the future of our democracy.”
Like other recipients of this round of Scott funding, FFF is a collaborative fund, pooling resources from a group of donors and directing funds to community-based organizations around the central theme of supporting immigrant justice. In Monday’s online announcement, Scott specifically highlighted pooled funds as a resource for other donors, writing, “For anyone similarly interested in supporting the leadership of people from the communities they’re assisting, funds are a great resource […] The funds we picked look for teams with lived experience in the issues they’re addressing.”
Across its work, FFF “centers, trusts, and supports the leadership of BIPOC and directly impacted people to lead the immigrant justice movement, shape strategy, make decisions, and transform the systems that impact their lives.” Over its nearly 20-year history, FFF has infused the immigrant justice movement with more than $200 million in funding, making NEO Philanthropy one of the top funders for the movement.
NEO Philanthropy President Michele Lord sees this round of funding as a deep investment in the movement’s future, saying, “At NEO Philanthropy, we are proud to host the Four Freedoms Fund and want to congratulate our entire FFF community—staff, donors, grantees, and other partners on this recognition. Time and time again, the immigrant justice movement has demonstrated the strength and power of immigrant and BIPOC communities, even in the face of extreme challenges. This much-needed infusion of resources can be truly transformational – but only if we recognize the leadership of immigrant communities.”
With this announcement, Chakraborty hopes others will increase their funding. “Now is the time for funders to step up and sustain this momentum! Everyone has a role to play and there is still so much work to do,” she said.