Following the 2016 election, journalist Brandon Ellington Patterson interviewed seven groups affiliated with the Movement for Black Lives (M4BL) for an article recently published in Mother Jones magazine. Several of these groups are current grantees of the Black-Led Movement Fund (BLMF). In addition to the M4BL’s ongoing efforts to advance police and criminal justice reform, the article focused on the cross-sector organizing occurring between movements following the outcome of the 2016 election as a way to build capacity.
For instance, Dante Berry, Executive Director of Million Hoodies Movement for Justice, a BLMF grantee, noted the connection between black and immigrant communities. “We have tons of black folks that are going to be affected by the potential cutting of DACA,” Barry says in the article, referring to new administration’s plan to enact stricter immigration laws. As a result, Million Hoodies is increasing its focus on protecting undocumented people in cities and campuses across the country.
Similarly, Black Lives Matter (BLM), another BLMF grantee, has plans to expand its gender justice work around the country, the article notes. Patrisse Cullors, a co-founder of BLM, said the organization plans to increase efforts to protect reproductive justice, working collaboratively with other gender justice organizations.
The BLMF is proud to support these and other organizations within the Movement for Black Lives. For more information about the BLMF, please see the fund’s page.