The U.S. Human Rights Fund, a collaborative fund comprised of fourteen donors, is pleased to announce $1.6 million in grants to be awarded to fifteen domestic social justice organizations for their work to promote human rights in the United States.

USHRF supports human rights organizing and advocacy in the United States, and works to increase awareness of universal human rights norms and strategies among donors. The Fund is housed at Public Interest Projects.

In its June 2008 docket, the Fund made grants in the areas of human rights education and training, national and regional networks, and strategic thought and advocacy.
Please click here to download a complete list with details on each grant.

Grants for human rights training and education will support an initiative to deepen the expertise of core human rights educators (American University’s Center for Human Rights & Humanitarian Law) and provide general support for key providers (Border Network for Human Rights, National Economic & Social Rights Initiative, National Employment Law Project, and National Law Center on Homelessness & Poverty) across a range of issues.

The Fund has also renewed its support for several human rights networks –the Southern Human Rights Organizers Network and the Poor People’s Economic Human Rights Campaign – as well as extended support to new partners in this area. (Rights Working Group)

The docket also introduces a deeper investment in strategic thinking and advocacy. This year USHRF launched two advocacy sub-funds on immigrant rights and the elimination of juvenile life without parole sentencing.

• The docket includes $400,000 in support to two immigrant rights organizations (Border Action Network & National Immigrant Justice Center) carrying out campaigns to improve due process and mitigate harsh enforcement against immigrants, as well as to a key human rights worker rights campaign. (Coalition of Immokalee Workers).

• The Fund also provided $456,000 in grants to campaigns to end juvenile life without parole sentences in three states (California, Louisiana and Michigan) and a new national project to coordinate state legislative, litigation, and international advocacy work on JLWOP.

In November 2008, the Fund will consider proposals on human rights communications, grassroots, legal and policy training efforts. The docket will be a closed (by-invitation only) solicitation.