Our Goal

The Peggy and Jack Baskin Foundation believes that all individuals should be guaranteed human rights and access to justice. Immigrant women and gender-expansive people in the United States, especially those who are undocumented, are highly susceptible to “fast-track deportation,” unfair detention measures and face unique barriers. For immigrant women, detainment, deportation, or unlawful treatment could lead to separation from their children or dependent family members, for whom they are the primary caregivers. They often do not have access to legal counseling or resources that would protect them from Immigration Services, such as bilingual assistance or certified court interpreters. Immigrant women and gender-expansive individuals who are survivors of relationship abuse and sexual assault face additional hardships. Abusive partners are often the only pathway to citizenship for those survivors, and abusers often use this as a control tactic.

The possibility of deportation and other consequences, such as detainment, make immigrant women less likely to report domestic and sexual violence. A report by Human Rights Watch, January 2017, states “the involvement of local police in immigration enforcement has caused immigrant victims of crime, including violent crimes such as rape, to fear reporting those crimes to the police.”2 Due to a change in law enforcement practices that historically did not report survivors of relationship abuse to ICE, immigrant women and gender-expansive people are often forced to choose between a hostile government and an abusive situation.

The Peggy and Jack Baskin Foundation seeks to relieve the pressures and roadblocks immigrant women and gender-expansive individuals are currently experiencing by providing funding to support nonprofit organizations that 1) provide legal assistance for women and gender-expansive individuals seeking citizenship, 2) advocate for women and gender-expansive individuals who have been detained and/or 3) specifically advocate for policies, practices, and laws that allow immigrant women and gender-expansive individuals to safely report relationship abuse and sexual violence. The Foundation is also seeking to fund organizations with a focus on aiding immigrant women and gender-expansive individuals in migrant worker positions and residing in rural areas.

What We Look For

The Peggy and Jack Baskin Foundation would like to support programs, organizations, and initiatives that incorporate the following components through existing guidelines:

  • Program has a direct and explicit goal of providing legal assistance and protection for immigrant women and gender-expansive individuals residing in Monterey and Santa Cruz regions in order to gain citizenship, receive help if detained, ensure continued residency, or report relationship abuse with no threat of deportation.
  • Program access is not limited based on financial ability; programming is offered at little or no cost to participants, regardless of immigration status.
  • We look for organizations that address the unique threats to the livelihoods of immigrant women and gender-expansive people of all occupations, particularly those acting as migrant workers in rural areas.
  • There is a preference for applicant organizations for which women and gender-expansive individuals of color are the primary decision-makers.
  • There is a preference for applicant organizations that integrate gender equity into their personnel policies, such as robust parental leave, child care, flexible work schedules, and relationship abuse workplace policies.

Please note: The Peggy and Jack Baskin Foundation is not afraid of the word feminism! We encourage you to openly discuss your intersectional feminist programming, goals, or approach.

To Apply

APPLY FOR A GRANT

Unsolicited proposals will not be accepted.