CJI is seeking new members for our FreeHer and Starving the Beast Circle funds. In recent years, CJI has enjoyed a period of sustained growth in grantmaking, staffing, and support from our community. As the unique needs of our movement grow, so does our need for more Circle members!
Each funding Circle housed at CJI is a grantmaking collaborative of Circle members: Community organizers, activists, donors, and donor-activists investing in the power of bottom-up approaches that nurture the innovation and leadership of directly impacted communities. These cohorts are not just racially diverse, but also intergenerational, cross-class, and wholly focused on our organization’s mission to end mass incarceration.
CJI’s singular funding model is grounded in the core belief that transformational change begins by supporting organizations that are either led by or are amplifying the leadership of directly impacted people. Trust—in our grantees and in the wisdom afforded by their lived experience—is the guiding principle behind this new brand of philanthropy.
Our grantmaking prioritizes project proposals that directly address issues affecting marginalized populations, including Black and Brown communities, women, young people, indigenous people, immigrants, LGBTQ+, incarcerated and formerly incarcerated people, low-income communities, and others most harmed by the U.S. criminal legal and immigration systems. CJI Circle members are the engine behind our grantmaking determinations, process, and priorities.
If you would like to become a Circle member, let’s talk! Reach out to our Executive Director, Aleah Bacquie Vaughn at [email protected]. Your lived experience is all you need to start the conversation.