Solidarity in Action: Meeting the Moment for Immigrant Communities

We have been following the onslaught of executive actions and harmful rhetoric targeting DEI, trans people, immigrants, and the federal bureaucracy – efforts clearly aimed at dismantling decades of progress in service of rising authoritarianism. We’re witnessing the lengths this administration will go to keep its campaign promise of mass deportations with executive orders targeting everything from birthright citizenship to legal support for unaccompanied migrant children. It’s hard to deny the cruelty at the center of all of it. In California, home to the largest immigrant population in the country, the promise of mass deportation raids is bearing true, with the Central Valley seeing some of the harshest enforcement activities. While undocumented immigrants are the most visible target, DACA and TPS holders, refugees, green card holders, and naturalized citizens are impacted by this anti-immigrant agenda.  

That is why, in this moment, it is as important as ever, for philanthropy to show up in solidarity with immigrant communities and fund the movement for immigrant justice. 

This work is not new. The movement has fought for decades to make California one of the most pro-immigrant states in the country, where we passed sanctuary city laws, prevented local law enforcement cooperation with ICE, and expanded Medi-Cal access to undocumented immigrants. In this moment, the immigrant justice movement needs increased resources to respond to raids, deportations, and litigation opportunities, but also to bolster the movement’s capacity for long-term organizing, visioning, and policy change.  The ecosystem to respond and grow impact during this moment and for the long term exists.  Philanthropy can step in to increase investments and trust that they can and will pivot as needed.

We know that not every organization is an immigration funder. Given the importance and size of the immigrant community in California, immigrants should be a key lens through which we approach our work in philanthropy. Immigrants are in our schools, they access health care, they rent and buy homes. Immigrants also work in all of these sectors. If you are an education, health care, or housing funder, how are you showing up in solidarity with immigrants in this moment? 

What Funders Can Do 

• Stay informed. The political landscape is shifting fast and often. It is critical that we all ensure we stay informed and avoid spreading misinformation, causing unnecessary fear and panic. Verify information that you share and stay connected with trusted sources like your local newspaper or rapid response network.  
• Apply an immigration lens to your existing strategy. Do you fund immigrant serving organizations? Great! If not, what do you already fund? How do your current funding priorities impact immigrants? Talk with your team and with your grantees to explore ways that your current work aligns with immigrant justice as immigration is intersectional.
• Fund rapid response networks. The demand for rapid response hotlines, Know Your Rights trainings, and immigration legal services is at an all-time high. These critical services must be fully resourced to ensure that immigrant communities are well-informed and remain safe from deportation.  
• Invest in long term power-building. While addressing the immediate crisis is critical, we cannot forget that the movement must also drive a vision for the future of immigrant justice. Invest deeply at the state and local level, with multi-year general operating support, in narrative change, organizing and base-building, leadership development, political education, voter engagement, policy advocacy, and co-governance strategies.  
• Tap into immigration funding. Grantmakers Concerned with Immigrants and Refugees (GCIR) is a great first step to finding like-minded funders and funding opportunities. GCIR has recently released a set of recommendations for funders who want to invest in the immigrant justice movement and are hosting a pooled fund, the California Immigrant Justice Infrastructure Fund, to resource front line immigrant justice organizations. GCIR also hosts several funder learning communities, including the California Immigrant Inclusion Initiative, the Resourcing Rural Belonging Community of Practice, and the Advancing Economic Justice Community of Practice.  
• Learn and act in community. We are in it for the long-haul and know we can support a movement effectively, together.  NCG is committed to showing up in solidarity with immigrants, in partnership with GCIR, and ensuring an immigrant lens is applied across future work. Over the next year our organizations will host a series of programs with an intersectional approach for funding the immigrant justice movement. You can also look forward to an immigration-focused breakout session at NCG’s annual conference on May 2nd. In the meantime, we hope you join us virtually on March 19th for  Building Resilient Immigration Legal Services in Northern California. Register here!