Here are several of the many organizations and funds that demand social justice and relief for those fighting for the cause.
BY KATRINA YENTCH
BARISTA MAGAZINE ONLINE
Feature photo by Nicole Baster for Unsplash
No words can truly depict how heavy the weight is that sits on us at Barista Magazine regarding the actions that have taken place over the past week in the United States of America and beyond. Many individuals, businesses, and organizations within and outside of our coffee community are affected—and if you aren’t physically affected by the events that took place, you are certainly aware of the state that this country is in. You are aware that protests have broken out across the nation over the police killing of George Floyd, an unarmed Black man, in Minneapolis. For coffee businesses that are deciding where they can lend a hand, we’ve further looked into several of the many organizations that are providing relief to affected groups in Minnesota and beyond.
Note: For those who have or are considering donating to the Minnesota Freedom Fund, they are asking that you redirect your donations to this list of organizations, as their overwhelming amount of support through donations is legally unable to be allocated to others currently.
To provide aid directly against the actions that took place in Minneapolis:
Donate to George Floyd’s family
The brother of George Floyd has organized a GoFundMe to help the family cover the expenses of George’s funeral and burial, as well as lodging and travel expenses for all court proceedings and mental and grief counseling. His younger sister Bridgett Floyd is also hosting a fundraiser to support George’s daughter Gianna.
Sign the #JusticeForFloyd petition
Organized by Color of Change, this petition demands to the mayor of Minneapolis that all of the officers affiliated with George Floyd’s death are charged with murder. Attorney General Keith Ellison has recently been assigned to help lead the prosecution of the charges affiliated with the murder of George Floyd—a step to speeding up the process. You can sign the petition here, as well as make a 30-second video that calls for these officers to be charged with murder too. The organizers’ goal is to reach 4 million signatures.
To support policy makers and grant initiatives for social justice:
The Philanthropic Initiative for Racial Equity (PRE)
The PRE is a 501(c)3 organization and project of Tides that seeks to increase the amount and effectiveness of resources to combat structural racism. Through skills capacity building, education, and the gathering of grant makers/seekers, the group assists other foundation representatives with resources to advance their own missions of racial equity. Some of the topics they’ve worked on include mobilizing community power and racial justice philanthropy. In response to the protests, PRE Board Member Thenjiwe Tameika McHarris said on Facebook, “The solution to ending police violence and cultivating a safer country lies in reducing the power of the police and their contact with the public. We can do that by reinvesting the $100 billion spent on policing nationwide in alternative emergency response programs, as protesters in Minneapolis have called for. City, state, and federal grants can also fund these programs.” To help the cause, and Tides’ other social justice programs, you can donate here.
Campaign Zero’s mission to end police brutality and killing is rooted in policy legislation. “We can live in a world where the police don’t kill people by limiting police interventions, improving community interactions, and ensuring accountability,” the campaign says. Through several policy solutions, the group offers ways that lawmakers can end police violence, including community oversight, ending for-profit policing, demilitarization, and training. You can make a PayPal donation to fund Campaign Zero’s efforts here.
To support protest movements, one of the most effective approaches is to provide bail funds for those who have been sent to jail.
When a bail is set and paid for by The Bail Project, that money goes back to their fund at the end of a client’s case, which allows this national nonprofit organization to continue using it to help others two to three more times a year. The Bail Project works throughout several U.S. cities where the protests are taking place. You can help them bail protestors out here, as well as reach out (no costs affiliated) if you need bail funds yourself.
The National Bail Fund Network
Hosted by the Community Justice Exchange, the National Bail Fund Network is built up of 60 community bail funds that use “the regular payment of bail, as well as strategic bail out actions in campaigns to end money bail and pretrial detention in both the criminal legal and immigration detention systems.” In addition to their directory of pre-trial and immigration bail funds, they’ve recently released another community-resourced list of bail funds for protestors across the country.
