The Family Justice Movement Fund (“FJMF” or “the Movement Fund”) is a participatory, collaborative fund established in 2024 with a mission to mobilize philanthropic partners and community members to resource the family justice movement in New York State. We define the family justice movement as a collective effort rooted in fairness, dignity, and opportunities for all families to thrive without the involvement of the child welfare system. It aims to achieve racial justice, bridge systemic gaps, and ensure physical and psychological safety for families. Powered by organizing and community-building, this movement strives for liberation and empowerment of families through collaborative actions and shared visions. We aim to achieve this mission through our funding priorities and participatory grantmaking process. 

We herein refer to the child welfare system as the family regulation system (FRS) to underscore how the system acts more as a punitive force, regulation and separating families, especially those of color, rather than solely focusing on the wellbeing of children. This terminology emphasizes the broader issues of systemic inequities and the need for a just approach to family support.

This new Fund will be the first of its kind in New York and in the country. Launched by the Redlich Horwitz Foundation (RHF) and Andrus Family Fund (AFF), and collaboratively designed with movement leaders, FJMF aims to unite funders, movement leaders, and community members. 

Our goal is to work collectively to build and sustain grassroots organizing efforts that combat the harms of the FRS, the unnecessary surveillance and separation of families, and support alternative community-based supports that help families thrive and remain together. 

Over the next few years, the FJMF aims to grow and sustain the family justice movement in New York State by increasing engagement, building leadership, and enhancing public support. The Movement Fund seeks to promote learning and growth by fostering cross-learning between philanthropy and movement leaders, increasing awareness of FRS harms among philanthropic organizations, and building their capacity to support social movements that are chronically under-funded across the state, outside of New York City. 

Key near-term goals include increasing the number of people and organizations involved in FRS work, building coalitions, and enhancing support for family justice campaigns. The Movement Fund also aims to increase public support and awareness of the harms of the FRS. Additionally, it plans to promote cross-learning, increase power-sharing capacity among philanthropic organizations, and build the power and connectedness amongst movement leaders.

The FJMF supports grassroots organizing, movement-building, and systemic change to address harms caused by the FRS. It prioritizes ground-up movement building and intersectional movement work, with a focus on criminalization, immigration, education, health justice, and housing. We understand movement work to include organizing and mobilizing communities, advocating for policy changes, raising awareness on issues, taking direct action, providing legal and policy support and building coalitions and collaborating with other groups.

The Movement Fund will provide multi-year grants ranging from $50,000 to $100,000 per year, to an initial cohort of organizations, with plans to grow over time. It will prioritize organizations in New York State (excluding New York City) engaged in family justice work and intersectional movement work, particularly around criminalization, immigration, education, health justice and housing. In the near term, the fund will prioritize organizations already engaged in, or positioned to pivot toward, family justice work. As the movement for family justice is in a nascent stage in New York, we are committed to supporting movement leaders in building their knowledge, skills and efforts in support of ending the harms of the FRS. Over time, we plan to expand both the number of grantees and the size of the grants.

The Movement Fund will not support work in New York City, in order to strengthen under-resourced movement-building work throughout the state. Secondly, the Movement Fund will not invest in work that expands harmful systems, employs top-down approaches to social change, or provides direct services without a clear political orientation toward systemic transformation. Finally, the Movement Fund will not back reforms that fail to address the root causes of systemic inequities. In other words, groups must demonstrate that their work is actively reducing the power, reach, and legitimacy of harmful systems. 

In addition to receiving grant funds, selected grantees will participate in a vibrant and collaborative state-wide learning community centered around peer learning and growth. The Movement Fund will resource the broader movement’s capacity by asking grantees to take part in structured cohort-based activities focused on building and sustaining the power of the family justice movement in New York. This may include participating in an organizing school, engaging in political education, and contributing to shared learning across the cohort. These activities will be supported and led by organizations who specialize in building the capacity of social justice movements.

These criteria were carefully considered with movement partners to ensure that the FJMF grants remain aligned with its mission and core values, fostering a diverse array of grassroots efforts and supporting those on the front lines of family justice to create meaningful and lasting systemic change.

Organizational characteristics sought

Structural Requirements

• Legally recognized as a 501(c)(3) or fiscally sponsored by one

• Operate primarily in New York State, excluding New York City

• In continuous operation for at least one year

• In good financial standing

• Maintain strong internal organizational capacity

Leadership and Governance

• Community-led or member-driven

• Leadership, staff, and board include community members and individuals impacted by carceral systems, including the family regulation system

• Accountable to the communities they serve

• Guided by a racial justice lens

Movement Alignment and Strategy

• Hold a clear analysis of the family regulation system and a vision for the family justice movement

• Organize around one or more of the following issue areas: family regulation criminalization, immigration, education, health justice, housing

• Organize with youth, families, caregivers, and/or practitioners

• Demonstrate local, state, and/or national reach

Collaboration and Capacity Building

• Actively collaborate with partner organizations and coalitions in New York State

• Desire to engage in structured capacity-building support and collective learning

Please find a recording of our "How to Apply Workshop" that took place on November 6th, 2025, here

About the selection process

The Family Justice Movement Fund uses a participatory two-phase nomination and invitation process designed by a committee of movement leaders, called the Family Justice Leadership Circle, to support equitable access and community accountability. This selection process was thoughtfully designed to ensure that funding decisions are guided by lived experience, community priorities, and the leadership of those closest to the work.

The Family Justice Leadership Circle is a committee made up of organizers, advocates, and strategists who are active in the family justice movement locally and nationally. Members bring deep experience in grassroots organizing and policy advocacy, and most have been directly impacted by the family regulation system. 

Organizations who primarily operate in New York State (excluding New York City) and who align with the purpose, vision and criteria may nominate themselves or be nominated by others, with a timeline below and details in the nomination form. 

Self-nomination is strongly encouraged as part of our commitment to equitable access, to help minimize barriers, and to honor the perspectives of those directly engaged in movement work. Organizations aligned with this initiative are urged to come forward. Collaborative completion of the nomination form, by nominators and nominees, is encouraged.

All nominations, whether submitted by an organization itself or by a community member, colleague or partner, will be reviewed with equal care by the fund’s Family Justice Leadership Circle.

Nominations should be submitted using the nomination form, which will be made available on this website on November 1st 2025. Organizations who primarily operate in New York State (excluding New York City) and align with the purpose, vision and criteria may be nominated by others or nominate themselves. Both pathways are equally welcomed by the Family Justice Movement Fund, and all nominations, whether submitted by a community member, colleague, partner, or the organization itself, will be reviewed with equal care and seriousness.

The nomination form collects key information about the nominee, and the fields are visible below. It may be completed by someone familiar with the nominee’s work or by the nominee themselves. Collaborative completion is encouraged. Nominators are welcome to work alongside the nominee to ensure responses are accurate, clear, and reflective of shared values.

Nomination form fields:

Nominator information:

• First and last name

• Email address

• Organization or affiliation

• Role 

• Relationship to the nominee

• Self

• Other (fill in)

• Years known

• Reason for nominating the organization 

Nominated Organization information:

• Organization Name

• Website

• Mission and vision

• Values

• Primary location (The city and county where the organization is based.)

• Where you primarily work (The New York counties where the organization does the majority of its work.)

• Nonprofit Status:

  • 501c(3)

  • Fiscally sponsored by a 501c(3)

  • Neither

• Number of years in operation

• Total annual operating budget in dollars

Key nominated organizational contact information:

• First and last name

• Title

• Email address

• Phone number

Movement work and approach of nominated organization:

• Organization’s key movement priorities and issue areas

• Organization’s movement building approach

About the leadership of nominated organization (include in form or as an attachment):

• Brief biography of the organization’s leader

• Brief biography of key movement staff and/or community leader

• Brief biography of second key movement staff and/or community leader (optional)

Submission instructions:

Nomination forms must be submitted using the nomination form, as a PDF file, via the submission link provided. Nominations will be accepted through November 30th at 11:59pm.

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