Over the past year and a half, Pennsylvania’s residents, immigrant leaders, advocates, and organizers have used their voices, their feet, and the ballot box to stand up for immigrants and push back against unprecedented attacks on civil rights, human rights, and due process. Tens of thousands of community members have responded swiftly to attacks on their families and neighbors. This bravery and moral clarity is all the more uplifting because it comes from an incredibly broad and diverse statewide coalition. It is clear, immigrant justice is the litmus test for democracy of our time.
From last year’s convening, a cohort of local and national funders in partnership with the Pennsylvania Immigration Coalition (PIC) launched a new initiative to support immigrant organizing across the state. The Pennsylvania Fund for Immigrant Rights and Equity (PA FIRE) leverages the support of philanthropic foundations and contributions from the general public to advance a coordinated state plan to support, protect, and strengthen immigrant communities across the state. In less than a year, PA FIRE has raised nearly $2 million in brand new funds from foundations, donors, and the public. These funds help fuel a statewide plan to ensure that Pennsylvanians have the needed capacity to serve immigrant communities now and to advance long-term systems change that will strengthen our commonwealth.
Please join us for an engaging one-day convening that will both bring local, statewide, and national funders together to strategize about resourcing immigrant justice in funder-only spaces, and provide opportunities to learn from leaders working directly with immigrant and refugee communities across the state of Pennsylvania.
Mark your calendar now, and RSVP here to confirm that you’ll be joining us!
Why Attend?
- Hear from organizers and leaders about what we have learned from the past year of immigrant rights organizing in Pennsylvania and beyond – what strategies have been successful and what lies ahead.
- Discuss with peer funders about how immigrant communities are impacted and implicated across the range of foundations’ distinct missions and priorities.
- Strategize about how philanthropy at-large can continue to respond to the current crises against immigrant communities as well as build groundwork towards equitable, fair, and healthy futures for all.
- Network and share best practices with local, PA regional, state, and national leaders and changemakers in the movement.
Stay tuned for speaker announcements, a detailed agenda, and accommodation information. We hope you can join us.
If you have any questions, please email team@pennsylvaniafire.org.On behalf of the PA FIRE Advisory Committee:
Amy Eusebio, Ceiba Philadelphia
Caitlin O’Brien, Scattergood Foundation
Farrah Parkes, Gender Justice Fund
Jasmine Rivera, Pennsylvania Immigration Coalition
James Liou, FG Strategy Advisors
Juliana Cabrales, Four Freedoms Fund
Leah Reisman, The Barra Foundation
Mischico Warren, The Foundation for Delaware County
Shira Hodges, Philanthropy Network Greater Philadelphia
Raksmeymony (Rex) Yin, Asian Mosaic Fund