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10 minute read
Social justice is at the heart of Catchafire – we were created with the goal of providing an innovative way for nonprofits to have equitable access to resources, and for volunteers to donate their time and skills to causes they are passionate about. Through our model, nonprofits have access to critical capacity support, allowing them to carry out their programming and operations while fully focusing on their missions and communities. Nonprofit organizations on Catchafire cover a wide variety of cause areas, such as housing, education, healthcare, diversity and inclusion, and more. There is a strong cross-sector representation of social justice organizations on the platform.
What is social justice?
Social justice refers to the equal civil, economic, political, and social rights of an individual. This includes equal access to opportunities, wealth, and privileges in society, leading to a higher quality of life. Social justice - or lack of - weaves its way into everyday aspects of life, such as education, employment, healthcare, and housing, to name a few.
Despite how far we’ve come as a society, there are many existing barriers to social justice, and there is a longstanding unequal access to basic resources like food, medicine, and education. Due to historic and systemic inequities, there are many disparities in resources based on race, ethnicity, geography, and gender. This has a profound impact on individuals and families, affecting both generational health and wealth. It is our collective responsibility to ensure that all communities have equal access to resources and protections that will ensure a higher quality of life. It is unacceptable in this day and age to see health problems, life expectancies, and access to food and medicine suffer when these are problems that could have been solved at the root cause.
Similarly, there are stark differences in political participation due to barriers placed on civil liberties such as voting rights and free speech, preventing citizens’ voices from being heard and impacting voter participation rates. There is a historic injustice in the United States when it comes to the mass incarceration and excessive punishment of Black, Indigenous, and people of color (BIPOC) communities. One of every three Black boys, and one of six Latino boys can expect to go to prison sometime in their lives, compared to one of every 17 white boys. Due to racial bias, there are a significant number of cases around individuals who are illegally convicted, unjustly treated, or given the death penalty. Black people are five times more likely to be stopped without just cause than a white person. They also receive pretrial detentions at higher rates than white peers with the same legal charges brought against them. This treatment follows people of color when they reenter society and are given little to no guidance or resources on reintegrating into daily life and the workforce. A just and equitable society ensures that everyone is allowed to voice their opinions and be part of participatory decision making; unfortunately, we’ve seen in the United States that this is not the case. As a result, rates for voter participation, mass incarceration, and excessive punishment are greatly affected.
Lack of equity disproportionately affects BIPOC communities. Historic policies in the United States have created an unequal distribution of power and resources for decades. Due to this lack of funding, many BIPOC start and lead nonprofits in order to serve their communities and address social justice issues head-on.
We’ve seen this inequity firsthand through our work. We recognized these barriers and designed an equitable model that aims to support BIPOC communities. Catchafire provides an especially crucial value for heavily resource-constrained grassroots organizations that are unable to meet funding requirements by traditional grantmakers. Chronic underinvestment and inequity is part of why Catchafire disproportionately serves more BIPOC-led organizations and Black-led organizations. Many of these are social justice organizations and social change organizations that center around leading the conversation on equity and equal access. Their programming is crucial to the foundation of their communities. They work diligently to ensure the rights of their community members are upheld and that they have access to the resources they need for their health and well-being. These organizations are everyday heroes in their communities, serving on the frontlines to ensure that community needs are met.
What does a social justice organization do?
Social justice organizations strive to level the playing field and ensure that everyone has equal access to the services and resources they need to thrive. They aim to fight against injustice, support people who are denied the equal rights they deserve, and improve life outcomes for entire communities. At the same time, these social justice organizations are critical in creating conversation and driving systemic change in their communities to improve the well-being of marginalized groups for future generations.
Social justice touches upon a myriad of issues, and social justice organizations focus on a wide variety of topics such as:
- Access to healthcare
- Access to education
- Climate justice
- Disability discrimination
- Diversity and inclusion
- Employment discrimination
- Gender equity/discrimination
- Gun violence
- Housing access and discrimination
- Hunger and food insecurity
- Immigration rights/refugee rights
- Incarceration and recidivism
- Political discrimination (such as voting rights)
- Racial equity
- Reproductive health
“Social justice encompasses economic justice. Social justice is the virtue which guides us in creating those organized human interactions we call institutions. In turn, social institutions, when justly organized, provide us with access to what is good for the person, both individually and in our associations with others. Social justice also imposes on each of us a personal responsibility to work with others to design and continually perfect our institutions as tools for personal and social development.”
10 social justice nonprofit organizations
There are hundreds of social justice organizations and social change organizations on Catchafire doing critical work in their communities to ensure equity for all. Despite their crucial work, many lack the budget and capacity they need to sustain and expand their programming. Volunteering on Catchafire provides social justice organizations with the support they need in their work to advance equity for their communities.
To date, volunteers on Catchafire have donated over 1 million hours to help nonprofit organizations serve their communities. Thanks to these highly-skilled volunteer professionals, nonprofit organizations on Catchafire have saved over $200 million dollars and have freed up their capacity to focus on their programming and missions.
Here are ten social justice organizations on Catchafire doing incredible work. Support them today by volunteering for an open project or following them to get notified of new projects.
1. Black Women Rally for Action
Black Women Rally for Action in Los Angeles County is a coalition dedicated to advancing health, economic, and social equity for all Los Angeles County Black women through direct action, advocacy, and connection to resources.
Michael saved the social justice organization $392 on a marketing materials call, providing strategic advice on creating a flyer for their monthly prayer service.
“As much as I enjoyed talking to Brenda (the Co-Chair), I love even more the mission of her organization. We need to rally behind people like Brenda to enable them to serve their communities.”
Michael V.
Volunteer
2. B’nai B’rith (Australia, New Zealand Chapter)
With chapters all over the world, B’nai B’rith is the oldest and largest international Jewish community service organization. As a global social justice organization, B’nai B’rith is dedicated to advancing human rights, multiculturalism, and anti-discrimination through advocacy, education, and community programming.
Since August 2021, the organization has saved over $50,000 on 13 calls that have provided critical capacity support. Tanique volunteered for a flexible coaching support project that helped B’nai B’rith with their professional development goals. The project savings (close to $2,000) allowed the social change organization to continue to provide education programming for schools at no cost.
“It was such a pleasure coaching on this project and providing guidance. The team was very easy to work with. They took the feedback and implemented it on the project which will certainly help the organization to grow its volunteer program. I would certainly recommend this team to any Catchafire volunteer.”
Tanique E.
Volunteer
3. Every Day is A Miracle
Every Day is a Miracle is a social justice organization focused on alleviating food insecurity and improving the socioeconomic conditions in underserved communities in the Bronx, New York. The organization sources and provides high-quality nutritional food to residents. By providing food relief, they ensure that communities have access to healthy foods, addressing a social determinant of health and improving health outcomes for children, adults, and seniors in the Bronx.
They also provide a variety of services geared toward self-sufficiency; their programming includes job readiness training, mentorship services, computer classes, entrepreneur support, and financial literacy training. Their social services arm provides case management, housing assistance, and healthcare application support, among other offerings.
Every Day is a Miracle led an exhaustive search for an individual who could update their logo and visual identity, while preserving the organization’s mission and community it served. They posted the project on Catchafire and met Daniel, a design director skilled in branding design systems. Daniel saved Every Day is a Miracle over $7,000 on the logo design project, helping the social justice organization elevate their brand and increase their fundraising efforts.
“Daniel was great to work with. Super flexible, reliable, and on point with addressing any issue. He was also very supportive when it came for me to make a final decision for changing our logo and launching our new brand.”
Maria T.
Pastor
“Maria is a pleasure to work with and is doing truly amazing work. It was a great experience all around and I was more than happy to help Maria. If you are considering volunteering for Every Day is a Miracle I wouldn't hesitate! She was a great partner and our collaboration was super rewarding.”
Daniel I.
Volunteer
4. Karen’s Club
With vast disparities in high-quality medical care, BIPOC and low-income communities are underrepresented in clinical trials and rarely get the medical attention that they need. Karen’s Club’s mission is to empower patients of color with the knowledge and trust to pursue clinical trials that can save or extend their lives. They envision a world where communities of color can receive access to the best and most advanced healthcare available, enabling them to live healthy lives. Their programming and advocacy work provides a platform for patients of color to have their medical questions and needs met.
Ricky helped Karen’s Club through a social media call that focused on the social media campaign for the organization’s launch.
“Ricky was knowledgeable, encouraging, and had lots of great tips we could put into action right away for our new organization. I'd highly recommend him to anyone starting out on their social media journey!”
Nava F.
Co-Founder/COO
“It was great to connect with Nava; she has a great and meaningful mindset. What Karen’s Club is aiming to do will absolutely impact so many lives in an outstanding way. There are so many people who are unfortunately not getting the knowledge and help that they need that could help to save their lives; this is what Karen’s Club is here for. I stand behind their cause and I’m absolutely here to help going forward. I recommend anyone that can help them to volunteer and put a step towards benefitting this amazing organization.”
Ricky A.
Volunteer
5. Reviving the Islamic Sisterhood for Empowerment (RISE)
Based in Minneapolis, Minnesota, RISE’s mission is to amplify the voice and power of Muslim women. They imagine a world where all Muslim women are celebrated and represented as leaders in the community. Their platform addresses inequities and lack of representation through storytelling, civic engagement, and leadership development. Through their work, RISE works to transform the narrative and center Muslim women as ‘Sheroes’ who are agents of change in the community.
Julie saved RISE over $7,000 through her volunteer work on a management skills coaching project. This money was not only reinvested directly into RISE”s storytelling project, but the project helped support the staff’s professional development.
“Julie supported my professional growth as a first-time manager, providing coaching in delegation, collaboration, emotional intelligence, and other key supervisory competencies. Her curriculum was personalized to match our organization's needs and our team's strengths. Thanks to her guidance, I feel like a more competent, confident, and agile leader.”
Sarah G.
Storytelling Program Manager
Apply now to provide graphic design support for the organization’s impact report.
6. Second Chance Studios
Second Chance Studios is a nonprofit digital media company in New York that trains and employs formerly incarcerated individuals. Formerly incarcerated individuals rarely receive any training or assistance rejoining the workforce, and skilled work is nearly nonexistent. Second Chance Studios addresses recidivism and employment by providing digital media fellowships where individuals can gain valuable technical and professional experience in audio and video production.
Since March 2021, Second Chance Studios has saved over $150,000 by working on projects with volunteers on Catchafire. Pamela saved the organization over $7,000 on a mission, vision, and values project that updated their key messaging.
“Work with Second Chance Studios if you have the opportunity! I can't recommend their team, led by Lajuanda, or their mission enough. The materials sent to me in advance of our project, in addition to our intro call, provided all of the info and rich content I needed to update the organization's mission, vision, and values.”
Pamela M.
Volunteer
Apply now to work with Second Chance Studios and provide human resources support.
7. The Elevation Project
The Elevation Project’s mission is to reduce crime rates and recidivism in the Greater Philadelphia area. Their holistic approach helps formerly incarcerated individuals and their families reintegrate back into society while helping at-risk youth become successful and break out of generational cycles. They ensure that individuals have the resources and tools they need to thrive in encouraging and safe environments through mentoring, job readiness training, and therapeutic groups.
Apply now to provide volunteer support on a press kit or graphic design.
8. The Equity Project
The social justice organization is focused on advancing racial equity through radical access. The Pennsylvania program targets youth in Kensington, Philadelphia. The neighborhood has experienced historic underinvestment, systemic racism, and intergenerational poverty, impacting the health and well-being of youth and families. Kensington is at the epicenter of the opioid epidemic, and has also experienced a significant spike in gun violence. The Equity Project provides safe spaces and programming for youth to support trauma healing, developing change, and building resiliency for their future goals.
Sarah worked on a program strategy and goals project and created a plan to achieve a program’s goals using timelines and success metrics. The project saved The Equity Project over $6,000, allowing them to fund more staff.
“It was an honor to work with an organization so deeply committed to supporting the youth of Kensington, Philadelphia through trauma-informed youth engagement programming. The work this group is doing is powerful, radical, and transformative. Thinking with them about their current programming and imagining future pathways to support Kensington's youth in healing and building outlets for resilience and creativity gave me new ways to think more deeply about listening and integrating community and lived experience into practice.”
Sarah C.
Volunteer
9. Women On Change
This social justice organization in Washington D.C. focuses on gender equity and youth development, aiming to break the cycle of challenges for communities through mentorship, entrepreneurship, and project-based learning. Their approach focuses on self-sufficiency by investing and training entrepreneurs to improve overall quality of life.
Since posting their first project in May 2022, Women on Change has saved over $90,000 thanks to the support of volunteers on Catchafire on critical programming and operations.
Apply now to help Women on Change overhaul their website with a user friendly UX design to make it easy for people to understand what the organization does and how they can support their work.
10. Asylee Women Enterprise
Asylee Women Enterprise works with asylum seekers and forced migrants as they navigate the immigration legal process, begin to heal from past trauma, and rebuild their lives in Baltimore. The social justice organization’s wrap-around services address basic needs, self-sufficiency, and healing through various community supports. Their services include classes, mental health and medical care, immigration legal services, case management, public benefits assistance, emergency and transitional housing, as well as material support such as food, clothing, and rental assistance for individuals and their families. Through Asylee Women Enterprise, the immigrant community in Maryland can receive the comprehensive support they need.
Apply now to support Asylee Women Enterprise with logo design and visual brand identity.
Discover more social justice organizations on Catchafire
Sign up today to volunteer and use your skills to fight against injustice. You will help support critical programming for social justice organizations like our partners listed above. Every minute counts and has an immediate impact on social change organizations and the communities they serve. You can contribute your talent to projects related to a variety of departments, such as:
- Accounting
- Communications
- Data Analysis
- Event Planning
- Finance
- Fundraising
- Human Resources
- Marketing and Design
- Strategy Consulting
- Web Development
You can read more volunteer impact stories here and visit our blog for more volunteer and nonprofit spotlights.
If you’re a grantmaker and would like to learn more about equipping nonprofits in your community with responsive, high-quality operational support, let’s connect.
