Racial Justice Coalition reallocates $36K in emergency funds to local orgs

Press release from the Racial Justice Coalition:

In a moment when thousands of people globally are challenging state-sanctioned violence against Black people, it is imperative that we continue to center the organizing and movement building efforts of those on the immediate front lines. The Movement for Black Lives comes at a crucial time as the COVID-19 pandemic further exposes cracks in the system and exacerbates the historical inequities against Black people, Indigenous people, people of color, undocumented residents, low income communities, people with disabilities, and elders who are continually underrepresented and under served. 

The Racial Justice Coalition (RJC) deeply acknowledges the impact that COVID-19 and the ongoing organizing for Black liberation has placed on organizations providing critical services and mutual aid for our community, and we are excited to announce the reallocation of non-restrictive Emergency Support Funding to nine local organizations:

• Artists Designing Evolution (adé PROJECT)
• Asheville Buncombe Institute of Parity Achievement (ABIPA)
• BeLoved Asheville
• Eagle Market Streets Development Corporation (EMSDC) on behalf of Change Agent Cooper, LLC
• Eagle Market Streets Development Corporation (EMSDC) on behalf of The Institute for Preventative Healthcare and Advocacy
• Equity Over Everything
• Faith 4 Justice Asheville
• JMPRO TV
• My Daddy Taught Me That

Valuing transparency, the RJC was awarded the Z. Smith Reynolds Foundation’s Collaborative Problem Solving grant of $150,000 per year for two years in 2019. An amount of $36,000 for partner participation intended to support grassroots and directly impacted community leadership is now being reallocated towards the Emergency Support Funding. 

As a coalition that includes many different organizations and individuals, the RJC is committed to deconstructing the various forms of structural racism, that includes the long-haul strategies of shifting power and reinvesting in communities. We recognize that systemic violence and the criminalization of Black people intersects with the inequities of many marginalized groups, and we should all be exploring ways we can move resources to support those leading this work. None of us are free until all of us are free. 

According to Rob Thomas, RJC Community Liaison: “We believe in supporting our community, not just with words but with action. Support in action looks like access and resources; there is no better way to support the community than to do so with action.”