As activists across the country fight back against restrictive laws targeting reproductive health care, accurate portrayals of history in schools and colleges, appropriate care for trans youth and equal rights for members of the LGBTQIA+ community, the ever-expanding carceral state and continued threats to the environment, far too many people are facing lost employment, arrest, prosecution, harassment and threats of violence.
In 2017 the RFC embarked on what became a deeply engaging 18+ month strategic planning process. It began with a survey of current and former Board, staff and consultants and resulted in a plan that we committed to using in our daily work to help guide key decisions. As part of the process, we revisited our founding documents, recommitted to our core mission and values, drafted a vision statement, identified key priorities and crafted strategies and targets to guide and evaluate our programming for the next few years. The final version of the plan was approved by the Board in January 2019 for 2019-2023.
Granting summaries from the RFC's fall 2023 awards. Recent grants supported young activists from the Stop Cop City movement, the children of racial justice and LGBTQIA+ inclusion advocates, the children of leaders fighting for environmental rights and Indigenous sovereignty and more.
RFC Executive Director Jennifer Meeropol spoke with Board members Michael Ford and Nilanjana "Buju" Dasgupta about their connections to the RFC and how our work engages them.
The RFC highlights two beneficiary families with positive updates, including long-awaited reunions with loved ones and a new project uplifting the voices of political prisoners.
We reached out to activist parents whose children receive RFC grants and asked them to share their wisdom with us. These are their thoughtful responses. These are their responses.
We add our voice to the choir of human rights advocates calling for a permanent ceasefire in Palestine and for a lasting peace.
When we reached out to RFC activist parents to ask them to share their wisdom with us, we received an unexpected additional gift: statements of heartfelt gratitude for the RFC community. We do not operate in a vacuum, and we are so grateful for all of you who make our work possible. We’re honored to share some of these messages with you.