OVERVIEW: This foundation makes grants for democracy and social justice movements in the U.S., focusing on themes of racial, gender, reproductive, immigrant, economic, environmental and climate justice, as well as a funding program focused on New York. Across issue areas, FTF prioritizes equity and movement building.
IP TAKE: The Freedom Together Foundation, formerly the JPB Foundation, is a newer outfit with a sizable endowment, and it has rapidly become one of the most important funders of progressive movement building in the U.S. In 2023, the foundation shifted from centering issue areas (poverty, the environment and medical research) to centering its work around democracy and movement building. The foundation’s new president, Deepak Bhargava, told IP that it’s a change in mindset from “issue silos” to a more comprehensive understanding of “power,” and that the foundation’s future giving would center on “organizing and social movements, so those most impacted by issues and problems are able to help set the agenda.” Grantmaking in this vein has included large grants to national coalitions and regranting organizations for grassroots movements, leadership development, and front-and-center issues like “rising authoritarianism, climate change, economic inequality [and] rising racism.” Grantmaking supports organizations located across the U.S., as well as a few U.S.-based organizations that work internationally.
FTF is not the most transparent or accessible funder. Its website does not list or publicize its past grants or partners, though a full list of grantees can be found in FTF’s annual tax filings. FTF does not accept unsolicited funding proposals, preferring to support preselected organizations. FTF supports small, mid-sized, and larger organizations throughout the United States. According to some previous applicants, “cultivating a relationship with the President or senior-level staff is essential to receiving an invitation to apply.” FTF favors evidence-based practices, scalable projects and collaborative work.
In contrast to legacy foundations increasing their payout by 6% to fill the gaps in funding created by federal funding cuts across several sectors, FTF goes further. It has doubled its payout from 5% to 10%, according to Bhargava in a letter titled “Courage is Contagious.” Giving only appears to be ramping up, according to the NYTimes.
PROFILE: The New York-based Freedom Together Foundation, formerly the JPB Foundation, was established in 2011 by Barbara Picower, the widow of Jeffry Picower, one of the main beneficiaries of Bernie Madoff’s infamous Ponzi scheme. The foundation was established with a bequest of over $1 billion from Picower’s estate, and its endowment now stands at about $4 billion. In 2023, Barbara Picower stepped down as the foundation’s president, although she continues to serve as president emerita and chairs the foundation’s board of directors. She was replaced by Deepak Bhargava, who previously served on FTF’s board and as CEO of the Center for Community Change. Renewing its longstanding commitment to social justice, the Freedom Together Foundation also restated its mission, which is to “support people who have been denied power to build it, so they can change unjust systems and create a more democratic, inclusive, and sustainable society,” and realigned its grantmaking into five intersecting program areas:
Democracy, Gender, and Racial Justice
Community and Worker Power
Movement Infrastructure and Explorations
Faith, Bridging and Belonging
Reproductive Justice, Medical Research and NYC Community
In light of major federal funding cuts across several sectors, FTF goes further, doubling its payout from 5% to 10%. Bhargava, in a letter titled “Courage is Contagious,” writes, “The call we must answer today is a call of conscience (…) This crisis demands an extraordinary response from philanthropy. At Freedom Together, we’ll have the back of those answering the call. I’m proud that our board decided to spend 10% or more of our endowment — double what the law requires and what most foundations typically spend. We’re moving to provide rapid response grants to communities and organizations under attack. We’re backing groups that are defending democratic norms, as well as supporting safety and security initiatives for organizations under threat. And we’re doubling down on long-term strategies to get at the roots of the democracy crisis.”
Grants for Racial Justice, Immigrants, Democracy and Civic Engagement
The Freedom Together Foundation’s grantmaking is centered on “the fight to expand multi-racial democracy by protecting and strengthening basic democratic institutions.” In addition to protecting the rights of racial, ethnic, gender and other minorities, grantmaking has focused on voting, the right to protest and combating current trends toward authoritarianism. While the foundation’s Democracy, Gender, and Racial Justice Program addresses these issues, related grantmaking appears to stem from the foundation’s Movement Infrastructure and Explorations and Faith, Bridging and Belonging areas as well.
Some of the foundation’s largest, multi-million-dollar grants have supported national organizations, regranters and collaboratives involved in grassroots organizing, justice movements and diverse leadership development.
Smaller grants in the hundreds of thousands have gone to state-level, regional and local initiatives for voter engagement and organizing around specific issues, groups or industries.
Especially large grants have gone to the Movement Strategy Center, the Equal Justice Initiative, the Voter Registration Project and the Center for American Progress.
Other grantees related to racial justice and democracy include the United We Dream Network, the Alliance for Youth Organizing, the National Immigration Law Center and many others.
Grants for Reproductive Justice and LGBTQ Causes
Overlapping with its work for equity and democracy, FTF names gender justice, the rights of women and LGBTQ people, and reproductive rights as areas of grantmaking interest. Grants appear to stem mainly from the Democracy, Gender, and Racial Justice area, but grants for reproductive health and justice also stem from the foundation’s Reproductive Justice, Medical Research and NYC Community program.
- The foundation’s support for gender and LGBTQ causes has escalated in response to the 2022 Dobbs v. Jackson decision and conservative resistance to the recognition and LGBTQ people and rights.
- Top recipients in these areas include the Collaborative for Gender and Reproductive Equity, the Planned Parenthood Federation of America and the National Women’s Law Center, each of which received grants of several millions.
- Smaller organizations to win support include Black Women for Wellness of Los Angeles, the Miscarriage and Abortion Hotline, the Transgender Law Center and Women’s Democracy Lab, among others.
Grants for the Environment and Climate Change
A significant portion of FTF’s giving focuses on the organization of communities around environmental and climate justice. Specifically, grants have targeted voter education and mobilization for the adoption of clean energy utilities, divestment from fossil fuels and environmental issues relating to human health. This is another area of increased giving since the foundation’s restructuring.
- Some of the foundation’s largest grants have supported national organizations including GRID Alternatives, the Trust for Public Land, the National League of Cities and the United States Endowment for Forestry and Communities.
- FTF also supports local and regional initiatives for climate justice including Alabama’s Center for Rural Enterprise and Environmental Justice, Black Millennials 4 Flint, Green and Healthy Homes of Baltimore, the New England Grassroots Environment Fund, People over Plastic and the Green Infrastructure Leadership Exchange of Philadelphia.
Grants for Economic Development and Opportunity
One of FTF stated strategies for advancing social justice, economic equity and democracy includes support for organizations focused on mobilizing “worker power.” These grants tend to focus on organizations that organize and activate workers in specific sectors or industries. The foundation also supports a number of large organizations working more generally for economic justice, fair pay and economic opportunity for people living near or below the poverty line.
Grantees in these areas include the Low Income Investment Fund, Kentucky’s Mountain Association for Community Economic Development, the National Domestic Workers Alliance, the National Day Laborer Organizing Network, the Housing Partnership Network of Boston and One Fair Wage.
Grants for Public Health and Diseases
Since its earliest years, health has been an important area of giving for FTF. In addition to its giving for reproductive health and rights, the foundation continues to support major hospitals and medical research institutes across the U.S. with grants of over a million dollars.
Health grantees tend to be established organizations that can scale efforts like universities and medical centers. Grantees in these areas include the Connecticut Children’s Medical Center, Baylor College of Medicine, the Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai and Massachusetts General Hospital.
Grants for New York City
FTF names New York City as an area of grantmaking interest, and while the foundation’s larger commitment to social justice at the national level has somewhat eclipsed its local giving here, a number of grants continue to support the New York City community. Grantees include the Regional Plan Association, Harlem Children’s Zone, the Fund for Public Health in New York City, the Studio Museum in Harlem and the New York Public Library.
Grants for Religious Causes
FTF’s Faith, Bridging and Belonging grantmaking area names “faith- and spirituality-based organizations that are fighting for the soul and spirit of our nation” as new areas of interest in its work toward inclusive democracy. Still in its earliest stages, this program has yet to make many grants to faith-based organizations, but the foundation’s future giving will likely extend to more religious and spiritual groups over time. Early grants have gone to the Union Theological Seminary in New York and Bend the Arc: A Jewish Partnership for Justice.
Important Grant Details:
FTF’s grants range from $45,000 to $15 million, although a great majority of grants stay between $100,000 and $2 million.
FTF makes hundreds of grants each year. While many support large organizations and regranters for social justice, small- and medium-sized organizations that work with individual communities and interest groups are also represented.
Grantmaking is national in scope. Besides New York City, where it is based, this foundation does not name or show preference for any specific region, state or municipality.
Social justice and related areas of racial, gender, economic and environmental justice are the main themes of this funder’s work since its leadership change and restructuring in 2023.
While this funder’s website names programmatic areas for its grantmaking, it does not further publicize its giving or recipients, making it somewhat difficult to tease out specific goals and priorities.
This funder makes grants to preselected organizations and does not accept unsolicited proposals for funding. A newsletter signup is located at the bottom of the site, and the foundation maintains a page on LinkedIn.
For additional information about past grantmaking, see the foundation’s tax filings.
The Freedom Together Foundation can be reached via email at info@freedomtogether.org or by phone at (212) 935-9860.
PEOPLE:
Search for staff contact info and bios in PeopleFinder (paid subscribers only).
LINKS: