2009
What a Dollar a Day Can Do
Small money for big change! Grassroots philanthropy is possible. Back in 2007, I joined with a small group of passionate people to create NYC Venture Philanthropy Fund (VPF). We came together across job sectors, including not-for-profit, philanthropy and corporate. What...
Union Square Awards
Last Friday evening I had the honor and pleasure of representing North Star Fund at the Union Square Awards. The Union Square Awards are named for the plaza-like park on 14th Street which played a unique role in New York's...
Must Read: Democracy Off ICE
I highly recommend Aarti Shahani's article Democracy Off ICE on Organizing Upgrade. Organizing Upgrade is a new online forum for grassroots groups to think critically about strategy and building a powerful movement for justice. Aarti is on North Star Fund's...
Donor Advised Giving Is a Win/Win
This week the Wall Street Journal ran an insightful article on the advantages of donor advised funds, and why many donors are transferring the assets from their private and family foundations to them. You can find it here: Let me...
We're All Interconnected: Lessons from Rwanda and India
Ellis Cose is a winner of the 2009 North Star News Prize. Work on "Against the Odds," my public radio documentary series, has taken me to Rwanda twice and India once in the last year and a half. In...
Movement for Justice Victory
Congratulations to Movimiento por Justicia del Barrio for their victory against Dawney Day Corporation. You can read the full account here in a posting to RaceWire by Letitia Miranda. Movimiento has been a grantee of North Star Fund since 2005....
On Winning the North Star News Prize
I am, of course, honored to accept the North Star News Prize. In a democracy there is probably no more important task a foundation can take on than that of supporting grassroots groups committed to social justice. And in an...
What Winning the News Prize Means to Me
I am both honored and humbled to be selected as a recipient of the North Star News Prize for 2009. What's not to admire about the legacy of North Star Fund? Inspired by the life and work of Frederick...
Holiday Equality for All
When AWAAM's youth organizers decided three years ago that they wanted to make Muslim holidays official school holidays, I was thrilled. We joined the Muslim School Holidays Coalition, where we work to put the two major Muslim holidays on the...
Attention for Domestic Workers Movement
The domestic workers movement is moving ahead, attracting both widespread support and press attention. If you want to understand both the history as well as the current state of the movement, Lizzy Ratner's new article in The Nation magazine...
Rapid Response, Huge Impact: Paterson Signs Anti-Shackling Bill
Last month, Tina Reynolds, the director of WORTH, wrote me asking for funding through our Rapid Response Grant program to organize a rally in front of Governor Paterson's office in Manhattan. Their anti-shackling bill was at a critical juncture, and...
WORTH Pushes to Stop the Shackling of New Mothers
With the support of a North Star Fund Rapid Response Grant, WORTH (Women on the Rise Telling HERStory) and the Correctional Association organized a rally in front of Governor Paterson's Manhattan office to pressure the Governor to turn the Anti-Shackling...
Pride and Prejudice
The many stories, broadcasts and events commemorating the 40th anniversary of the Stonewall Rebellion and LGBT Pride make me proud of the health and vitality of the movement for queer rights. Marriage rights are breaking out all over (give...
Coming Home to Injustice
Organizing for Prison Reform and HIV/AIDS Awareness Ramon Velasquez, a former prisoner living with HIV is in Detroit for the US Social Forum. He has come to this gathering of activists, organizers, social justice advocates and their allies with his...
Keep Payday Lending Out Of New York
Sarah Ludwig is a member of North Star Fund's Board of Directors and co-chair of our Community Funding Committee. She is the founder and co-director of Neighborhood Economic Development Advocacy Project (NEDAP), a North Star Fund grantee from 1995-2003. Never...
People Power Breaking Out All Over
My belief in people power has been renewed in recent months by the grassroots response to so many challenges and outrages - from the hamlet of Jackson Heights, Queens to the forgotten community of Pikalevo, Russia. If you missed...
Trapped by Border Patrol
In March, Brandworkers member "Eliezar" was on a work assignment that took him to Vermont. His co-worker was driving and they were pulled over in what appeared to be a routine traffic stop by local law enforcement. However, this...
Judge Sotomayor and Community Leadership
Over the last week, President Obama's choice for the Supreme Court of the United States--Judge Sonia Sotomayor--has dominated the news. Predictably, we have heard from the usual array of legal scholars, political pundits and legislators representing views across the political...
Whose Neighborhoods Are Hit Hardest by the Foreclosure Crisis?
Congratulations to CHANGER, a North Star Fund grantee since 2006, for their prominent mention in the front page lead article in last Saturday's New York Times : Antoinette Coffi, 45, saw an ad on the subway, a photo of a...
Damayan Holds Health Fair and Gender Rights Training for Women
On Sunday, April 5, 2009, North Star grantee DAMAYAN Migrant Workers Association held Abante Babae, an open school on gender rights for Filipino domestic workers at the North Star office in midtown Manhattan. 'Abante Babae' means 'women advance' in...
Celebrating 30 Years of Funding Grassroots Movements
On Thursday, April 30, North Star Fund celebrated 30 amazing years of donor organizing and grantmaking in support of grassroots movements and activism at our annual Community Gala. For six years, I have had the honor and privilege of heading...
DWU Builds Support for Domestic Workers Bill of Rights in Albany
On Tuesday, April 28th, members and supporters of Domestic Workers United will return to Albany to build support for the Domestic Workers Bill of Rights. The Domestic Workers Bill of Rights provides key protections and basic rights for the over...
Our New Community Blog
Welcome to North Star Fund's new Community Blog. As the chair of the board of North Star Fund, I'm honored and excited to be leading off what we intend to be a lively forum for distributing news and viewpoints from...
