New Commonwealth Fund Announces $2M in Grants to Fight Systemic Racism

Inaugural, biannual grant awards funded by $30 million raised-to-date, $681,000 from former Boston Racial Equity Fund

BOSTON — The New Commonwealth Racial Equity and Social Justice Fund (NCF), a ground-breaking fund created by a group of Black and Brown corporate executives in Massachusetts to eliminate systemic racism has issued $2 million in grants to local and regional organizations throughout the Commonwealth that provide essential services and address urgent needs in their respective communities stemming from issues of racism and social injustice.

In only one year, the group has raised $30 million of its opening fundraising goal of $100 million, which is being used to support eligible nonprofit organizations and to build an ecosystem of area leaders and stakeholders committed to dismantling racism. Last November, the New Commonwealth Fund gave $1 million in emergency funding to several organizations that were addressing urgent and critical issues in Black and LatinX communities stemming from the COVID-19 pandemic and unjust criminal justice policies and practices.

This inaugural round of grants from the New Commonwealth Fund, which was formed in the wake of the brutal killing of George Floyd at the hands of police last year, will go to organizations for policing and criminal justice reform in Black and LatinX communities, as well as groups focused on economic empowerment, health-care equity, and youth education, empowerment and civic engagement. The grants will be distributed to organizations throughout the state–more than half of which serve communities of color outside of Boston, such as Brockton, Lawrence and Springfield.

The City of Boston recently transferred the resources of the Boston Racial Equity Fund, which former Mayor Martin J. Walsh started last year, to the New Commonwealth Fund. The New Commonwealth Fund combined its own funds with the $681,000 from the Boston Racial Equity Fund to support a number of Boston-based organizations in this round of grants, and will help fund the Boston Federal Reserve’s upcoming wealth gap study.

“The New Commonwealth Fund has grown even stronger as it enters its second year of existence,” said Myechia Minter-Jordan, a member of the NCF Executive Committee, and President & CEO, CareQuest Institute for Oral Health. “We have not lost a bit of energy or focus on our mission. We are fully committed to supporting and building the organizations throughout the Commonwealth that fight for racial justice and equity with financial and other resources. We are also working tirelessly in building an ecosystem of transformative leaders fiercely dedicated to dismantling systemic racism. We’re proud of what we’ve accomplished so far, but there’s still so much to do. We’re in this fight for as long as necessary.”

The New Commonwealth Fund received inquiries from 139 groups seeking support, and is granting awards from $25,000 to $150,000 to 40 community-based groups. Four organizations are receiving grants of $100,000 or more. They are:

  • Citizens for Juvenile Justice: NCF’s grant will help support advocacy for a fair and effective juvenile justice system that focuses on rehabilitation and recognizes the ways children are different than adults.
  • GOTVax: NCF’s grant will allow GOTVax to conduct a COVID vaccine access program in the City of Lawrence.
  • ACT Lawrence: NCF’s grant will help support the expansion of emergency financial programming for disadvantaged Latino residents in Lawrence, including those directly impacted by the gas explosion crisis in 2018.
  • Children’s Services of Roxbury: NCF’s grant will help support the delivery trusted and culturally-relevant innovative programs, behavior health resources, and other services to underserved children and families across Massachusetts.

About the New Commonwealth Racial Equity and Social Justice Fund

The New Commonwealth Fund was formed amid the COVID-19 pandemic and in the wake of the brutal killing of George Floyd by police and other recent, horrific racially charged incidents in this country. 

The Fund was founded by a coalition of Massachusetts Black and Brown executives for the sole purpose of leveraging their individual and collective power to work together with community organizations to make transformative societal changes by addressing systemic racism and racial inequity in Massachusetts.

To learn more about the New Commonwealth Fund or donate to support its mission, go to the New Commonwealth Fund website: www.newcommonwealthfund.org.