Here's how to donate to Black Lives Matter, along with 55 BLM charities and organizations that deserve your donor dollars and volunteerism
55 BLM Charities (and Organizations) to Donate to Right Now
Published on Feb. 10, 2022
Black lives matter—and Black lives could use your support, which is why myriad nonprofits have sprung up to buoy the enduring civil rights message and help give back to those suffering from racial injustice.
Sparked by the 2012 death of unarmed teen Trayvon Martin and the subsequent acquittal of his assailant, George Zimmerman, the Black Lives Matter movement began in 2013 and has since ballooned into an international battle cry taking on police-involved shootings of unarmed Black men. As the movement has grown, companies have stepped up with promises to donate to Black Lives Matter (BLM). After the May 2020 murder of George Floyd, for instance, companies pledged $50 billion in donations to Black communities and Black-owned businesses.
But some of that goodwill was performative allyship. A Fortune report found that only a fraction of the money has trickled down to Black communities. In other instances, copycat Black Lives Matter organizations have sprung up and siphoned money from the movement.
That’s why it’s more important than ever to know how to donate to Black Lives Matter. Luckily, countless nonprofits and organizations make it easy to donate to causes that align with Black Lives Matter or are adjacent to the movement. Many websites even feature an “in honor of” section, where you can dedicate your tax-deductible donation to a specific person.
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How these BLM charities were chosen
These Black Lives Matter charities and organizations were chosen based on the criteria below:
- Their mission is to uplift and support Black communities.
- Some of the organizations are nationwide, while others are global.
- They are open and transparent about their goals and accomplishments.
Black Lives Matter Global Network Foundation
Black Lives Matter‘s mission is to “eradicate white supremacy and build local power to intervene in violence inflicted on Black communities by the state and vigilantes.” One thing worth noting: The for-profit organization recently came under scrutiny for its lack of financial transparency. In response, the Black Lives Matter Global Network Foundation has a BLM Transparency center on its website to post updates on their finances, statements and steps.
NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund
Founded in 1940, the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund is the nation’s first civil and human rights law organization. Donate to the fund, and you can choose how you would like your donor dollars to be used—to aid voting rights, police reform and criminal justice, the Thurgood Marshall Institute or education—or you can elect to have your money go wherever it’s needed most.
The Loveland Foundation
The Loveland Foundation is a nonprofit that helps Black women and girls who are in need of mental health care. The demographic faces major roadblocks to therapy; treatment is often cost-prohibitive, with an average session costing up to $250. There’s also the stigma surrounding mental health in many Black communities. Still, Loveland says it has managed to raise over $250,000 to provide up to eight free therapy sessions to the program’s participants, many of whom are dealing with the stress and strain of racial inequalities in America.
Du Nord Foundation
Du Nord Craft Spirits is a Minneapolis-based Black-owned distillery that was destroyed by the riots in the days following George Floyd’s death. When it created a GoFundMe page to raise money to rebuild, it received “a tidal wave” of donations. As a result, it established an eponymous nonprofit, the Du Nord Foundation, to support underserved communities in the state. To date, it has distributed nearly $500,000 throughout the Minneapolis and Saint Paul areas to help BIPOC business owners rebuild.
The ACLU
The American Civil Liberties Union is a watchdog organization working to ensure that the United States Constitution works for all. It pushes for structural reform in policing and the justice system, women’s rights, voting rights and more. It aligns with the Black Lives Matter movement at the intersection of the fight for human rights and racial justice. Your donation in the name of Black Lives Matter can help make these reforms.
National Police Accountability Project
The National Police Accountability Project is a nonprofit arm of the National Lawyers Guild, the first racially integrated national bar association. Its mission is to protect human and civil rights in police-civilian encounters and to promote accountability of law enforcement officers who have violated the law or Constitution. According to its website, your BLM donation will be used to help “educate and inform the public about issues relating to police misconduct, provide information resources for nonprofit and community groups who work with victims of police abuse, support legislative reform efforts aimed at raising the level of police accountability, [and] create a forum for legal professionals and community organizations to come together and creatively work to end police misconduct.”
Minnesota Youth Collective
The Minnesota Youth Collective works to empower young people to become leaders and advocates of justice with the ethos that young minds can fight back against racism and other issues that younger generations face today. The nonprofit says it does its work through civic engagement and numerous initiatives in its home city of Saint Paul, which has a history of racial unrest and riots.
EmbraceRace
Founded in 2016 by a husband-and-wife duo, EmbraceRace helps educate children about race, racism and advocacy surrounding racial justice through webinars and social media outreach. “The EmbraceRace community grew substantially in 2020,” reads a statement on the organization’s website, “as parents, educators and caregivers grappled with the realities of the coronavirus pandemic and its disproportionate impact on communities of color, and as the murders of Breonna Taylor, George Floyd and others brought renewed attention to the scourge of police brutality.”
Community Bail Funds
When you send your BLM donation to this community bail fund, your contribution will be evenly split among 70-plus community bail funds, mutual aid funds and racial justice organizers. The fund says it has raised $20 million to date. If you’re wondering how to donate to Black Lives Matter, this website can help, as it lets you allocate your funds, so you decide which specific groups get your money.
Campaign Zero
Working to combat police brutality is at the forefront of the Black Lives Matter mission. Campaign Zero is doing its part by calling on local, state and federal lawmakers to take action and to use data-driven policy solutions to hold police accountable. Some of these solutions include fair police union contracts, body cameras, the limited use of force and changes to the way police are trained. One of the handful of positive changes that have happened since anti-racism protests began is a greater focus on how law enforcement is handled—and how it should be handled.
Color of Change
Color of Change is the largest online racial justice organization in the country. “As a national online force driven by 1.7 million members,” reads a statement on its website, “we move decision-makers in corporations and government to create a more human and less hostile world for Black people in America.”
Black Voters Matter
It’s important for people of all racial groups to obtain equal political power. But that won’t be possible for Black voters without voting equality, especially in light of the fact that lawmakers in various states have introduced laws that restrict voting access. The sobering reality disproportionately affects minority communities. Enter Black Voters Matter. Based in Georgia and advocating for Black voting rights across the American South, the organization advocates for policies that aim to expand early voting, resist voter IDs and strengthen the Voting Rights Act, among other things.
Equal Justice Initiative
The Alabama-based Equal Justice Initiative is home to the Legacy Museum and the National Memorial for Peace and Justice, both poignant reminders of America’s history of enslavement, lynchings, segregation and past and present mass incarceration. The nonprofit has committed itself to transforming the prison system—specifically ending mass incarceration—and protecting human rights for vulnerable people, like those in prison.
Know Your Rights Camp
Colin Kaepernick founded the Know Your Rights Camp to teach the Black and brown youth of America through educational seminars, self-empowerment and camps across the nation that help raise a new generation of leaders. The camp has teamed up with defense lawyers to provide legal assistance to freedom fighters—including Black Lives Matter protesters—across the country.
Black Mamas Matter Alliance
Black pregnant women continue to have dismal health outcomes. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Black women are three to four times more likely than white women to experience a pregnancy-related death. Most tragically, the CDC estimates that three out of five of these deaths are preventable. The Black-women-led Black Mamas Matter Alliance is on a mission to ensure that Black women thrive during and after pregnancy.
Black Alliance for Just Immigration
The Black Alliance for Just Immigration, an official affiliate of Black Lives Matter, is fighting for a world in which a multiracial democracy requires racial, social and economic justice for all. Also at the heart of its mission is the fight to end wrongful deportations.
The Movement for Black Lives
The Movement for Black Lives was born out of the racial unrest stemming from the police-involved death of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri. “End the war on Black people,” reads a message on the organization’s website. It aims to fight racism with programs focused on defunding the police, impacting politics, freeing arrested protesters and more.
UndocuBlack Network
The UndocuBlack Network is unifying and empowering Black undocumented immigrants with the resources and education they need to succeed. It’s also putting their mental health first with its Mental Wellness Initiative, which aims to break down barriers to mental wellness by providing resources and facilitating discussions.
National Bail Out
The National Bail Out organization gathers funds to help fight back against mass incarceration. The Black-owned, Black-focused collective is made up of lawyers, organizers and activists who are unified in the fight for justice. When you donate to National Bail Out, you’re helping the organization bail members of the community out of jail, provide support services like employment opportunities and work toward bail reform.
Black Girls Smile
Since its founding in 2012, Black Girls Smile has supported more than 10,000 Black women and girls nationwide through their workshops, therapy scholarship program and mental health literacy initiatives. They host an annual “Black Girls Are Magic” conference, to help support young Black women on their mental health journey, while offering on-demand suicide prevention training and student coaching at schools and community centers.
African American Cultural Heritage Action Fund
Born out of the National Trust for Historic Preservation in 2017, the African American Culture Heritage Action Fund works to preserve and nurture Black historic spaces, such as Black churches, and to help keep the richness and stark realities of Black history alive for future generations to know and tell. If you believe Black history is American history, this is a fund that’s worth your donation.
National Association of Colored Women’s Clubs
Founded in 1896, the nearly 126-year-old National Association of Colored Women’s Clubs stands on the shoulders of giants, one of whom is Harriet Tubman, a founding mother of the nonprofit. Since its inception, it has funded scholarships, built a maternity health-care center in Senegal, mentored young women and advocated for the rights of Black people.
Twin Cities Recovery Project
The Twin Cities Recovery Project supports those struggling with substance abuse by hosting a grief and trauma support group, handing out materials such as hygiene products and masks via a street outreach team and providing a substance-free social club. While anyone in the community is welcome to seek aid, the nonprofit offers culturally relevant support to those in the Black community.
IntegrateNYC
Segregation in schools is still a thing in 2023—at least in practice. Racial disparities abound in school districts from sea to shining sea, but perhaps that reality is starkest in New York City, where one school earned the shameful distinction of offering acceptance letters to only seven Black students out of 895 seats in 2019. It’s a reality that nonprofit IntegrateNYC is fighting back against, with a goal of raising $1.1 million for the city’s 1.1 million students.
Advancement Project
Founded by veteran civil rights lawyers, this nonprofit works on both a local and national level to support local communities in their fights for racial justice, connect like-minded folks across the nation and offer training, networking and resources. The ultimate goal: a world with quality education for all, the right to vote, no systemic racism and new systems of equality.
Anti Racism Fund
If you’re looking to support racial justice but don’t know which cause is most worth your money, the Anti Racism Fund can help. It funds organizations that align with its four major focuses: education parity, justice system reform, health and wellness access, and community outreach and social justice advocacy.
Village Arms
The African American family faces threats of police violence and inequities across all sectors, including education, housing and health care. Supporters of the African American Family Preservation Act in Minnesota propose keeping Black children with their families as much as possible, rather than overburdening the foster system. You can help them by donating to Village Arms, an organization aimed at keeping families together and raising awareness of the Minnesota act.
NAARPR Dallas
“Freedom is a constant struggle.” It’s the tagline of the National Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression, but it’s also the group’s reason for existing. The Dallas chapter of the organization is tackling police misconduct, economic injustice and prison reform head-on. Its goal is to change the dynamic between the cops and the community in a city and state fraught with racial tension.
Communities United Against Police Brutality
Black people are disproportionately targeted by police brutality, a grim fact that Communities United Against Police Brutality is centered around. Located in the Minneapolis and Saint Paul areas, the organization provides a 24-hour crisis help line and responds to calls by sending out a crisis response team, taking statements, offering assistance and referring community members to medical and psychological services. It’s the sort of solution people point to when they discuss defunding the police.
Vera Institute of Justice
Founded in 1961, the Vera Institute of Justice is a collective of hundreds of advocates, researchers and activists in the fight for fairness for people of color in the legal system. “We develop just, anti-racist solutions,” says the organization’s website, “so that money doesn’t determine freedom; fewer people are in jails, prisons and immigration detention; and everyone in the system is treated with dignity.”
Amistad Law Project
The Amistad Law Project endeavors to fight back against mass incarceration, often a product of institutional racism. The project, which gets its name from La Amistad, a ship that transported enslaved Africans from Cuba to the United States in 1839, aims to give some Pennsylvania prisoners a second chance.
Ida B. Wells Society for Investigative Reporting
Named after Ida B. Wells, a journalist in the late 19th century, and founded by veteran Black journalists, the society elevates up-and-coming journalists of color in the hope that they’ll be as fearless in their reporting on modern-day racial inequities as Wells was when she covered the scourge of lynchings across America. Through a program that includes workshops and trainings, it readies a new class of journalists to investigate and report on issues that affect all Americans. Since the society relocated to Morehouse College, your donations will be through the Morehouse College Office of Institutional Advancement.
Black Women’s Health Imperative
“What if all Black women enjoyed optimal health and well-being in a socially just society?” wonders the Black Women’s Health Imperative. Racism in health care is definitely real, and this 40-year-old nonprofit says it’s tackling those disparities by hosting marches and caucuses, publishing its Black Women’s Health Agenda and Report Card and providing wellness education for Black women on YouTube.
Trans Justice Funding Project
Black trans lives matter too. That’s the core message of the Trans Justice Funding Project. When you donate to the fund, you know your contribution is going toward local, grassroots initiatives run by trans people and serving trans people.
The Anti-Recidivism Coalition
The Anti-Recidivism Coalition has boots on the ground in California, where it says mass incarceration is a major civil rights issue. When founder Scott Budnick met a young boy who faced 200 years in prison, he knew he had to do something to help transform the justice system. To date, the nonprofit says it has helped over 41,000 people through its policy advocacy work.
Communities United for Police Reform
Communities United for Police Reform is training New York City locals to know their rights and observe and document police abuse in an effort to increase police accountability and improve safety for community members of color. The organization has taken up the fight for justice in many high-profile cases, such as the death of Eric Garner, a Staten Island local who died after police tackled him and placed him in a choke hold. After a public outcry, the officer, Daniel Pantaleo, was fired and recently lost a bid to get his job and pension back.
Woke Vote
Voter suppression is a plight of the Black community, the members of which are disproportionately targeted by unfair voting laws. But Woke Vote plans to put an end to all that. It’s investing in communities by training and mobilizing folks for outreach and voter mobilization efforts.
Austin Justice Coalition
If you’re not from Texas, you may be unaware of what’s happening in the Lone Star State. Austin is home to a fight against white supremacy and a call to end police crimes and unfair incarceration practices. For its part, the Austin Justice Coalition is working to improve policies that affect policing, advocating for changes to the city’s mental health emergency response policy, and educating and empowering the community. They offer annual, monthly, three-month and six-month payment options where you become an Equity Ambassador. Based on the option chosen, you can receive engagement opportunities, benefits and swag for contributing.
African Career, Education and Resources
African Career, Education and Resources has taken up the fight against the unfair housing practices that target Black people in Minnesota. By donating, you’re helping the organization connect residents to housing resources and empower them to fight for their right to fair housing.
National Action Network
Founded in 1991 by Rev. Al Sharpton, the National Action Network was formed in the spirit of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. to promote civil rights. It focuses on key elements of the fight, including criminal justice reform, voting rights, police accountability and health equity.
My Block, My Hood, My City
Chicago is home to My Block, My Hood, My City, an organization that focuses on folks living in the violent inner city. The nonprofit aims to widen students’ experiences by taking them on explorations centered on education, art, the culinary arts, sports and more. It also awards scholarships to its participants, offers support services to older adults and connects high school students with seniors in need.
Heard
Now hear this: Black disabled lives definitely matter. Heard is an organization providing resources to deaf people of color who are incarcerated, particularly in response to disproportionate telephone rates charged to deaf and hard-of-hearing imprisoned people and their families. The organization is also working to end police brutality against the deaf and blind.
Dream
Sometimes all a kid needs is an opportunity, and Dream is happy to provide one. The New York City–based nonprofit helps more than 2,000 students (including one rising star who says he aspires to become a doctor one day) to realize their dreams annually through its collection of free, extended-day, extended-year charter schools and youth sports programs.
Assata’s Daughters
Named after Assata Shakur—the Black Panther on the FBI’s Most Wanted list—this organization aims to empower Chicago youth through community activities and to teach its followers how to rise up against matters that oppress women and gender nonconforming people.
Black Table Arts
Minneapolis youth are top of mind for Black Table Arts, which runs a bookstore, a shared workspace and a safe space for local artists to create inside its headquarters. It also offers political and cultural education, keynotes and workshops to its members.
Buy from a Black Woman
“When you support a Black woman business owner, you support a whole community.” That’s the motto of Buy from a Black Woman, which helps educate budding Black female entrepreneurs with tools and resources and empowers them with business grants. The website includes a directory of 500 such businesses, so you can support Black women while shopping for stuff you need.
Philadelphia Black Giving Circle
A giving circle is a cool way to support a common issue or cause. It works like this: You donate to the Philadelphia Black Giving Circle along with countless other do-gooders. The money is pooled, and the organization spreads the love across a number of Black-focused charities in Philadelphia. The main mission is centered around the “joy, healing and liberation of the Black community.”
Minnesota Freedom Fund
The Minnesota Freedom Fund targets the issue of mass incarceration in the Black community. The organization slams the bail system as an oppression tool for people of color who, thanks to the racial wealth gap, are often not wealthy enough to bail themselves out of jail. The group aims to abolish cash bail statewide in Minnesota and implement fairer jailing practices.
National Black Leadership Commission on Health
Not only are Black people more likely to develop diseases, but they also have less access to health care and poorer outcomes than their white counterparts. The National Black Leadership Commission on Health wants to change that. Its programs and advocacy efforts aim to reduce health disparities and fight pervasive diseases, including HIV and AIDS, cardiovascular disease, breast cancer, prostate cancer and sickle cell disease.
The Marsha P. Johnson Institute
In 2023, at least 26 transgender and gender nonconforming people lost their lives to violence, according to The Human Rights Campaign, which tracks the numbers in an annual report. That sobering statistic is why nonprofits like the Marsha P. Johnson Institute exist. Named after the famous drag queen, the institute is fighting for social justice—including reproductive justice—and against gun violence.
Social Justice Learning Institute
With locations in Los Angeles and Houston, the Social Justice Learning Institute partners with organizations and businesses to empower communities of color. Some programs are JPMorgan Chase’s The Fellowship Initiative, where they provide academic support for young men entering college; the Inglewood and Lennox Greening Plan, where they partner with community stakeholders to increase urban greening, food, urban agriculture and more; and their Leadership Academy in the Sacramento City Unified School District, where they note working to “improve educational outcomes for students of color in Sacramento.”
Black and Brown Founders
According to their website, founder Aniyia Williams was inspired to create Black and Brown Founders to address “the gaps of venture funding and disparities in supporting people of color.” They host nationwide events to teach Black and LatinX entrepreneurs about venture capital, alternative forms of funding, marketing, design and more—all to help them start and run a successful business.
Voix Noire
This reparations-based organization offers assistance to Black women, marginalized genders and children in various aspects of their lives. Some of Voix Noire‘s initiatives include grocery delivery, COVID-19 tests, period supplies, water delivery, direct cash grants, and holiday and school-supply drives. Their accomplishments include donating more than 10,000 gallons of water in support of Flint, Michigan, along with donating over $20,000 in hurricane relief.
African Economic Development Solutions
Based in St. Paul, Minnesota, the African Economic Development Solutions aims to support African communities through business lending, business development and homeowner education. In 2022, they served 564 businesses and offered $1.1 million in loans and grants. To connect with their community, they host an array of events, including their National African Leadership Conference and the Little Africa Parade and Festival.
Community Justice Action Fund
The Community Justice Action Fund strives to end gun violence in America. Donating will directly help the coalition with their advocacy efforts, from training their volunteers and supporting leadership development workshops to investing in evidence-based programs and policies to prevent and stop gun violence in communities of color.
Sources:
- Fortune: “American companies pledged $50 billion to Black communities. Most of it hasn’t materialized”
- Human Rights Campaign: “Fatal Violence Against the Transgender and Gender Non-Conforming Community in 2023”
- The New York Civil Liberties Union: “New York City’s High School Admissions System Is One of the Most Segregated in the Country”
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: “Working Together to Reduce Black Maternal Mortality”
