|
Grants Will Support Community Groups Fighting
Predatory Lending in the Southwest; Registering
New Latino Voters in California; and Organizing
Families in Support of Economic Reforms in
the Deep South
SEATTLE, WA (April 21, 2004) – Marguerite
Casey Foundation today announced $6.4 million
in new grants to 22 community-based organizations
across the United States, including $300,000
to help low-income families advocate for stronger
anti-predatory lending laws in the state of New
Mexico.
Approved by the Foundation’s Board of Directors
on April 16, 2004, the grants come at a time
when thousands of community-based organizations
nationwide are struggling to make ends meet due
to dramatic reductions in public and private
support.
“The economic strain weighing on millions
of low- and middle-income families nationwide
is reaching crisis levels,” said Luz Vega-Marquis,
President and CEO of Marguerite Casey Foundation. “We
see grassroots, community-based organizations
as the vanguard in a movement of working families
advocating to change the systems and improve
the conditions affecting their lives daily.”
The 22 grants announced by the Foundation range
in size from $50,000 to $600,000. Of particular
note, is the Foundation’s grant to United
South Broadway Corporation (USBC), an 18-year
old Community Development Corporation in Albuquerque,
NM that works to eliminate barriers to credit,
capital, and homeownership while protecting the
financial independence of low-income families
through consumer education programs.
With $300,000 in general operating support from
Marguerite Casey Foundation, USBC plans to build
a statewide network of low-income families and
local grassroots organizations that will advocate
for stronger anti-predatory lending laws and
increase financial literacy. USBC will also work
to reach, educate and train families, financial
counselors, advocates and community organizations
around fair housing issues.
“Throughout the Southwest and the nation
as a whole, many families have little or no access
to fair and affordable financial services,” said
Vega-Marquis. “Our support of United South
Broadway Corporation reflects Marguerite Casey
Foundation’s expanding investment in the
fight against predatory financial services – a
commitment we plan to strengthen even further
in the years to come.”
Marguerite Casey Foundation also announced 21
other grants to support organizations involved
in community organizing, parent engagement, education,
advocacy and activism in support of building
a movement of low-income families. These grants
include:
- (Birmingham, AL). A three-year
$150,000 grant to support community organizing,
research and analysis to build a statewide
multi-issue social justice organization
in Alabama to improve the lives of low-income
families.
- (Los Angeles,
CA). A three-year $300,000 grant to support
the Voces del Pueblo (Voices of the People)
program, an extensive voter engagement
initiative aimed at mobilizing 1,000,000
registered Latino voters who have been
identified as unlikely to vote in the
next election.
- (Chicago,
IL). A three-year $375,000 grant to support
a collaborative network of youth, community
development, and organizing and family
service organizations in southwest Chicago
to assist local young people in building
positive futures and becoming successful
members of society.
For a complete list of grantees, please visit
the Marguerite Casey Foundation Grants
Database.
With limited exceptions, Marguerite Casey Foundation
grants are focused primarily in four regions
of the United States. These are: the Midwest,
beginning in Chicago; the Deep South; the Southwest,
including the U.S./Mexico Border; and the West,
including California and Washington.
Most of the Foundation’s grants are intended
for core operating support, enabling recipient
organizations to use the Foundation’s resources
for basic needs, leadership development and capacity
building rather than for designated project support
or specific programs.
|
