PHOTO / TIM GREENWAY
Michelle Draeger.
May 9, 2023
LGBTQ+ grants to advance justice in Maine
The Maine Justice Foundation in Augusta is making available a round of grants of up to $10,000 from its LGBTQ+ Fund.
The foundation will accept applications from May 9-23 for grants from organizations working to advance awareness and understanding of LGBTQ+ issues.
“The foundation is committed to access to justice for all, including those marginalized members of the LGBTQ+ community who face discriminatory treatment in all aspects of society,” Michelle Draeger, the foundation’s executive director, said in a news release. “We hope to fund projects that serve to eliminate unjust bias and discrimination operating against this vulnerable community.”
The LGBTQ+ Fund supports education and advocacy aimed at achieving access to justice and equity for individuals identifying as LGBTQ+. The fund will support members of the LGBTQ+ community by forging social, systemic and economic solutions to combat discrimination and bias against LGBTQ+ individuals and groups in Maine.
Grants will be made to qualified organizations at every level of society including, but not limited to, the legal system, health care, education, the workplace, food insecurity, natural resources and housing. Applicants must be Maine-based and must demonstrate the involvement and participation of Maine residents who identify in the LGBTQ+ spectrum in all aspects of the proposed project.
Seven founding donors formed the fund in 2016; the first grants were awarded in 2019.
The committee’s members are Judith Fletcher Woodbury, retired partner, Pierce Atwood; Dana Eidsness, senior anti-hunger policy advisory, Governor’s Office of Policy Innovation and the Future; Jessica Fienberg, professor of law, University of Maine School of Law; Joanne Lewis, assistant district attorney, Bangor; and Jessica Mizzi, Coffin Family Law fellow, Pine Tree Legal Assistance.
The Maine Justice Foundation, founded in 1983 as the Maine Bar Foundation, is the state’s leading funder of civil legal aid for poor and vulnerable Mainers.
For more information, click here.
Most Recent
Most Recent
0 Comments