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Social Justice
The
Social Justice Program works to inspire civic action and democratic participation
that contributes to a just society. Particularly, the Social Justice Program
supports organizations and projects that further the Foundation’s priorities in
legal services, civic engagement, and attaining civil rights goals.
Social Justice provides funding to support access to legal services for low- and no-income residents of the Bay Area Legal services providers that offer assistance in a wider range of areas are generally preferred over those that offer only a very narrow range of assistance.
Social Justice also supports a wide range of programs to encourage civic participation. These include community organizing, youth organizing, faith-based organizing, and volunteerism, as well as voter registration, voter education, and voter mobilization to raise voter participation among low-income communities of color, youth, and new citizens. From time to time, the Social Justice Program also supports media-related projects that focus on media reform through organizing.
Social Justice strives to reinvigorate the democratic process through strategic grantmaking, special projects and building space for collaboration.
Social Justice’s civil rights funding supports agencies and programs that work to protect the civil and human rights of all Bay Area residents, and specifically those who suffer discrimination due to race/ethnicity, sexual orientation, gender, immigration status, and disability. This area of Social Justice grantmaking also includes supporting projects focused on improving outcomes for people in prison, those recently released from prison, and foster youth.
Mini-grants for Get Out the Vote activities ($500-$7500) are usually available within the six months prior to an election to support a range of non-partisan get-out-the-vote activities. These mini-grants are awarded to organizations that are willing to collaborate, undergo legal training and voter engagement training, document their activities, and commit to raising voter participation over time by remaining engaged in the work with a cohort of others. For more information on these mini-grants, contact Dennis Quirin, Social Justice Fellow at 415.733.8527.
The Social Justice Program also funds capacity-building support to Muslim, Arab, and South Asian immigrant community organizations with a group of philanthropic partners through the Post 9/11 Civic Engagement Project. This project is administered by Asian American/Pacific Islanders in Philanthropy (AAPIP) and is intended to build the capacity of immigrant-serving organizations for these populations to engage with the broader community and to compete for foundation funding. For more information, contact AAPIP at 415.273.2760.
For more information about the Social Justice Program at The San Francisco Foundation, please contact us at 415.733.8500 or socialjusticeinfo@sff.org.
Social Justice Staff
Ronald M. Rowell [bio]
Program Officer, Social Justice
Tessa Rouverol Callejo
Coordinator, FAITHS Program
Dennis Quirin
Program Fellow, Social Justice
Michelle Myles Chambers
Program Assistant, Social Justice