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Advocates React to President Trump’s Proposed Funding Freeze on Life-Saving Programs

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For Immediate Release

Jan. 28, 2025

WASHINGTON – On Jan. 27, President Donald Trump announced that his administration would pause federal grants, loans, and other financial assistance. The announcement sent shock waves across the country. On Tuesday, Jan. 28, U.S. District Judge Loren L. AliKhan temporarily halted the administration’s funding freeze. Human rights advocates, including those with the Raising Child Care Fund, voiced concerns over the impact of cuts to lifeline programs such as Medicaid, Head Start, the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, and more:

“With wages so low, and the price of basic necessities like food, health care, and rent so high, working families depend on federal programs like child care, Head Start, SNAP, and TANF to make ends meet,” said Mary Ignatius, Executive Director of Parent Voices.

“This administration has been in power for less than a month and it is already clear that the President is determined to pay for tax cuts for his billionaire friends by taking resources away from working people,” said LaDon Love, Executive Director of SPACEs in Action. “Every community in America is harmed by this order, from children in HeadStart to veterans, from medical researchers to construction workers.”

“Not only does this order bring harm and confusion to some of our most vulnerable community members, it is an attack on our Constitution which does not allow the President to disobey laws simply because he does not like them,” Love added. “If the President wants to repeal programs like Medicaid and HeadStart, let him take his case to Congress.”

“For this reason, our organization has chosen not to rely on federal grants. However, we actively advocate for child care providers who do benefit from these supports, working to advance the critical infrastructure necessary to meet the needs of marginalized families and children across Alabama,” said Lenice Emanuel, Executive Director of the Alabama Institute for Social Justice.

“Federal funding has been crucial in sustaining early education programs, especially in under-resourced communities where access to quality childcare and education is already limited,” said Dr. Constance Smiley Dial, owner of Trinity Kids Learning in Mobile, AL. “For providers like me, these grants are essential to maintaining operations, supporting staff, and offering affordable care to working families. These funds enable us to invest in updated educational resources, implement advanced curricula, and ensure safe and nurturing learning environments for the children of Alabama.”

“There is a very fragile and thin line between keeping a roof over your head or homelessness,” Ignatius said. “It is abhorrent that there is any discussion to freeze and essentially cut life-saving relief while boasting extending tax cuts for the 1% who don’t need it. This will cost taxpayers $400 Billion per year, and increase poverty at unprecedented rates.  The administration is limiting life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness to only the richest in this nation. It’s shameful.”

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SPACEs in Action is a non-profit, grassroots organization that advocates for the health and dignity of Black and Brown communities in the DC Metro region.

Parent Voices is a partnership of parents throughout California that combines leadership development and community organizing in its efforts to increase funding, improve quality, and provide better access to child care for all families.

Alabama Institute for Social Justice (AISJ) is a nonprofit organization that advocates for social justice and racial reconciliation across the state of Alabama.

Trinity Learning Center is a Christ- Centered Daycare that always strive to show each child that God’s world is a beautiful place to live, love and learn!

The Raising Child Care Fund (RCCF) is an initiative of ECFC that pools private foundation dollars to give grants to groups that lift up the voices of families, early educators, and allies—working alongside them to build powerful coalitions to transform child care and expand equity.

 

Advocate: Cutting Life-Saving Programs While Extending Tax Cuts For The 1% Is Abhorrent

Posted on

For Immediate Release

January 28, 2025

OAKLAND – In response to the Trump administration’s decision to pause federal grants, loans, and other financial assistance, a child care advocate, Mary Ignatius of Parent Voices, released the following statement:

“With wages so low, and the price of basic necessities like food, health care, and rent, so high, working families depend on federal programs like child care, Head Start, SNAP, and TANF to make ends meet.

“There is a very fragile and thin line between keeping a roof over one’s head and homelessness. It is abhorrent that there is any discussion to freeze, and essentially cut, life-saving relief while boasting extending tax cuts for the 1% who don’t need it. This will cost taxpayers $400 Billion per year, and increase poverty at unprecedented rates. The administration is limiting life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness to only the richest in this nation. It’s shameful.”

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Race Forward Condemns President Trump’s Executive Orders

Posted on

For Immediate Release

Jan. 21, 2025

WASHINGTON, DC – The national racial justice organization Race Forward today issued a statement in response to President Trump’s executive orders. Race Forward President and Chief Executive Officer Glenn Harris said: 

“The Executive Orders signed by Donald Trump directly threaten the ideals of democracy and justice we strive to uphold. To create a more perfect union requires people of conscience and the racial justice movement must continue to play a central role in ensuring their voices are heard above the swirl of executive orders.

“Public support for racial justice has left Trump with one option, executive orders. His decision to ignore the process of democracy is a direct reaction to the success of racial justice efforts over the last decades. The fierce attack on racial justice is driven by the reality of its eventual success given most Americans support addressing historic inequities and creating a fair society. According to a poll by The Washington Post and Ipsos, roughly 6 in 10 Americans believe diversity, equity and inclusion programs are ‘a good thing.’

“Attacks on racial equity do not happen in isolation. These executive orders, while targeting different populations, have the cumulative effect of erasing past gains toward advancing racial justice and a multicultural democracy in service of creating systems that ensure the levers of power and wealth are controlled and maintained by only a few. 

“The attack on government employees is particularly egregious.  Harassment of federal workers and the American public they serve, particularly communities of color, harm all communities. Efforts to eliminate federal employees from protections by unions are contradictory to civil servants performing their duties for all communities  without fear of retribution. 

“President Trump’s executive order on gender identity seeks to further endanger trans communities and non-binary people. Likewise, the administration’s attacks on immigration will continue to separate children from their families while weakening the foundations of our economy. The denial of fundamental rights and civil liberties is antithetical to the racial justice movement.

“One need not be a part of these communities to understand that justice and equity are dependent on the most vulnerable in society. Our fates are interconnected; the struggle is for all. We must remember the words of Ella Baker  “… freedom for all of us rests on ensuring it for the most marginalized among us.”
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United Women in Faith Urges President Joe Biden to Commute Federal Death Penalty Sentences

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December 19, 2024
 
NEW YORK – United Women in Faith, the largest denominational organization for women, is celebrating Advent by mobilizing its members to action. It called on President Joe Biden to commute the sentences of all 40 individuals on federal death row. As an organization committed to justice, we understand the ways in which the criminal justice system unfairly and unevenly targets people of color.
 
The Associated Press reported that “Studies of the death penalty have long shown racial inequality in its application, but a new report has found the disparity extends inside the death chamber itself. In an analysis of the more than 1,400 lethal injection executions conducted in the U.S. since 1982, researchers for the nonprofit Reprieve reported that states made significantly more mistakes during the executions of Black people than they did with prisoners of other races.”
 
“We’re calling on President Biden to commute death row sentences not on account of the one who did wrong, or the one who was wronged, but because of our love for God,” said Cynthia Holland, who serves as United Women in Faith’s Digital Advocacy & Organizing Assistant at the Office of Racial Justice. “I know what it’s like to watch a loved one sit behind bars unfairly. I can’t imagine what it would feel like to watch a loved one on death row and know they are innocent. The system is unjust and so is its application.”
 
As women who believe in the sanctity of all life, United Women in Faith opposes the death penalty.
 
The United Methodist Church’s Social Principles read, “Our commitment to the inherent dignity and worth of every person and our historic stance as United Methodists compels us to oppose capital punishment and the imposition of the death penalty…Tragically, the death penalty compounds the loss of human life with the deliberate taking of another life. Additionally, the administration of the death penalty disproportionately impacts people who live in poverty, those who are uneducated, people who live in marginalized racial and ethnic communities, and people with mental impairments.” 
 
Emily Jones, Executive for Racial Justice at United Women in Faith, said, “We are honored to add our voices to the growing national call for President Biden to commute the federal death row before he leaves office.”
 
“We remember that God loved us while we were still sinners (Romans 5:8) and that all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23),” said Cynthia Holland. “We should be grieved by the things that grieve God. We call for mercy, reform and justice. ” 
 
For more information, or to book an interview with Jones or Holland, email press@spotlightpr.org. 
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Spotlight PR LLC Celebrates New Clintonville Office with Open House

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Spotlight PR LLC, a crisis communications firm, recently held an open house at its new office location, 4041 N High Street, Suite 204. The company previously had a small workspace in Westerville, and is now firmly rooted in Clintonville. The firm works with leaders and organizations to help them develop their platforms and protect their brands.
 
Founded in 2016 in Northern Virginia by Jennifer R. Farmer, Farmer relocated the business to Ohio, where she is from, in 2020. The firm specializes in public relations with an emphasis on crisis management, publicity, ghostwriting and PR Coaching. It also offers a host of resources such as workshops, videos and blogs to help clients communicate more effectively and navigate a host of public relations issues.
 
“I founded Spotlight PR because I wanted to build a culturally competent public relations firm that would support good people in the important work they were leading,” said Farmer, aka “The PR Whisperer®.” “I am excited about the opportunity to support those on the frontlines of movements for racial and social justice.”
 
Farmer has more than 22 years’ experience in strategic communications and politics. She has worked with some of the biggest names in the racial and social justice space including the Rev. Dr. William J. Barber II of Repairers of the Breach, Pastor Michael McBride of LiveFree, former Ohio State Senator Nina Turner, and Grammy Award Winning rapper Michael Render, pka Killer Mike.
 
Current and former clients of Spotlight PR include CLLCTIVLY, the Decolonizing Wealth Project, the Florida Rights Restoration Coalition, Florida Rising, the Ohio Organizing Collaborative, Race Forward, the Raising Child Care Fund, The Heart Nest Center, United Women in Faith, and more.
 
“We are excited to close out the year in our new office and anticipate what is to come in 2025 and beyond,” Farmer said.
 
Visit Spotlight PR’s contact us page to learn more.

Advancement Project Celebrates 25 Years of Social, Racial Justice Advocacy

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WASHINGTON D.C. – With nearly 200 people in attendance, Advancement Project celebrated its 25th anniversary at the Rubell Museum in Washington D.C. on December 5. Advancement Project is a next generation, multi-racial civil rights organization that seeks to fulfill America’s promise of creating a caring, inclusive and multi-racial democracy.

For decades, the national racial justice organization has supported grassroots groups on the frontlines of major movements for education justice, climate justice, police reform, democracy, voting rights, redistricting and immigrant justice. They were a pioneering force in elevating the school-to-prison pipeline to the national discourse. Advancement Project also was on the ground in New Orleans following Hurricane Katrina, helping to ensure that the voices of survivors were heard during the reconstruction process.

Founded in 1999 by former NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund attorneys, Constance L. Rice, Penda Hair, Molly Munger, and Stephen R. English, Advancement Project has established a reputation as lawyers for the movement for racial justice. Executive director Judith Browne Dianis is a formidable force for change with a deep passion for community organizing.

“Despite the upheaval in the world, I take comfort in knowing that another world is indeed possible thanks to the work and advocacy of entities such as Advancement Project and their many partners,” said Jennifer R. Farmer, founder of Spotlight PR. Farmer previously worked as the managing director for communications for Advancement Project.

Advancement Project marked their anniversary with a gala reception at the Rubell Museum. It’s executive director Judith Browne Dianis remarked to those in attendance, “thank you for making incredible things happen every day.”

“As we direct our vision to the next 25 years, our unwavering belief is that another world is possible, especially for Black and brown communities,” said former educator, activist and Advancement Project Board Member Jesse Williams.

Advancement Project staff not only celebrated but they also paid homage to a host of grassroots organizations. They awarded the “Turning the Tide Awards” to Action St. Louis, a grassroots racial justice organization that seeks to build political power for Black communities in the St. Louis region. New Virginia Majority, which fuels multi-issue, multi-racial movements to transform Virginia, also earned the Turning the Tide Award.  

Advancement Project also issued the “Just Democracy Award” to the Service Employees International Union, one of the largest labor unions in the country; and the “Harry Belafonte Lift Every Voice Award” to Aja Monet, a Grammy-nominated Surrealist Blues Poet whose work explores themes of resistance, love and joy.

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Want PR Tips to help you build your platform? Check out our blog, The Pitch.

 

Race Forward: Our Work is Not Over: We Must Continue to Organize

Posted on

For Immediate Release

WASHINGTON – Following a hotly contested presidential election, Donald J. Trump won a second term as president of the United States. The national racial equity organization, Race Forward, released the following statement:

“The electoral results are a strong indicator our fight for racial justice must continue. It is imperative that we view these results as one chapter in a long struggle to advance a multi-racial democracy. This is not the end; it is a continuation of our work.

“In light of this moment, it is clear there are those in this country who have not embraced the idea that a racially just democracy carries with it the promise of opportunity where all can thrive. Rather, they desire to hold power, influence, and wealth among only a few. This is not the promise of America and we vow to continue our fight for a society where all can prosper, no matter their race, nationality, religion, gender, sexual identity, or political party. 

“We know there is power in our collective work and we must not relinquish or cede that power. Race Forward is issuing the call to protect and defend the rights of all Americans and to uphold the constitution of these United States. We must all commit to embracing civil discourse, the process of democracy, and to centering the needs of the most vulnerable amongst us. We condemn those who seek to usurp the democratic process through retaliation, intimidation, and violence. 

“At Race Forward, we will continue to work to advance a multiracial democratic society that serves all of us.”

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Facing Race Conference to Host Groundbreaking National Health Equity Grand Rounds Series

Posted on

For Immediate Release

November 20, 2024

NEW YORK – Race Forward announced today that it will host the American Medical Association’s (AMA) National Health Equity Grand Rounds panel conversation during the Facing Race conference on November 21 in St. Louis. The National Health Equity Grand Rounds aims to deepen understanding of health inequities, shape national discourse, and outline strategies to improve the nation’s health.

The AMA, along with other organizations including the Missouri Foundation for Health, serves as a Trailblazer Sponsor for this year’s Facing Race conference—which is the nation’s largest multiracial, multi-disciplinary and intergenerational racial justice convening with more than 4,000 expected attendees.

“We are pleased to have the AMA bring this focus on health equity to Facing Race. Their systemic approach to addressing inequities across the health care ecosystem aligns with our theory of change to transform and equip systems to advance racial equity,” said Race Forward President Glenn Harris. “We are also pleased to have the AMA as a Trailblazer Sponsor for our event. Their participation at this level is yet another testimony to the organization’s commitment to advancing health equity.”

The National Health Equity Grand Rounds will be accessible in-person and virtually during Facing Race on Nov. 21 from 2:00 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. CT. Under the theme “Rewrite the Script: Narrative Transformation for Equity in Health,” the session will showcase national thought leaders from diverse backgrounds—including physicians, writers, artists, and digital media experts—sharing insights on how we can challenge harmful narratives and reshape our approach to health.

The panel will open with a keynote from Rinku Sen, MS, Executive Director for the Narrative Initiative, and continue with a conversation including Emmy-nominated producer, writer and physician Mehret Mandefro, MD, PhD; Google Health’s Global Lead for Healthcare and Public Health Garth Graham MD, MPH; Bay Love, MBA, a principal at the Groundwater Institute and lifelong civil rights organizer whose career began in healthcare at a federally qualified health center, and Michelle Browder, the multi-hyphenate innovator, entrepreneur and artist who created the “Mothers of Gynecology” monument and park in Montgomery, Alabama. The AMA will also host arts-based experiences for conference attendees in the exhibit hall and atrium, with artworks and engagements created by Michelle Browder and Laolu Senbanjo, a Nigerian bred, Brooklyn based multidisciplinary artist, around the theme ‘Health Justice is our Co-Creation’.”

“We are excited to curate this unique space for cross-cultural collaboration,” Harris said.

In addition to the Grand Rounds, attendees will have the opportunity to interact with leaders within the racial justice movement during breakout sessions, plenaries, and a keynote address from MSNBC Host and author Joy Reid.

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About Facing Race:

Throughout its 17-year history, Facing Race has been a one-of-a-kind space that allows community organizers, activists, and movement makers from across the country to meet up, build strategies for advancing racial justice, and receive inspiration for the work ahead. To learn more about Facing Race, visit facingrace.raceforward.org

 

 

 

Child Care Providers, Parents and Advocates Share Concerns and Hope the Senate Study Committee on Access to Affordable Childcare Hear Them

Posted on

For Immediate Release

October 30, 2024

ATLANTA – The child care affordability crisis has taken center stage during the 2024 presidential election. Both presidential campaigns have acknowledged – to varying degrees of eloquence – the pressure families and communities face when seeking accessible, affordable early childhood education and care. Now, one week before the election, several parents and advocates affiliated with 9to5 Georgia shared their thoughts on funding for early childhood education and care. To watch their comments and concerns, visit this link and use this passcode: qp6.834V.

Parents, advocates and child care providers discussed:

  • The importance of child care solutions being as diverse as the families in need of care, and as innovative as the needs demand. For instance, child care solutions that center around the first shift, will not address the needs of those who work nights and weekends.
  • The need for flexible child care options that empower parents to balance work and family on their own terms.
  • The importance of sustainable funding to ensure child care providers can offer competitive wages which will enable them to retain their best educators.
  • The need for dialogue around “work life balance” to include child care in its fundamental elements. Dignified workplaces must recognize and adapt to the realities of working parents, understanding that supporting families benefits everyone. 

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Raising Child Care Fund Adds Three Grantees to Build Capacity to  Reform Child Care in a Total of 20 States

Posted on

For Immediate Release

WASHINGTON – As child care providers and parents navigate the fallout from the end of pandemic-era budget stabilization funds, the Raising Child Care Fund, a project of the Early Childhood Funders Collaborative, today announced it is investing close to half a million over two years in three new state partners who are organizing parents and child care providers to make child care affordable and equitable. The additions mean RCCF’s grantee partners are organizing in 20 states as part of a national movement to transform child care. The new grantees are located in Maine, Utah, and Virginia. Each group has earned commitments from state funders to match at least 10% of their national grant. 

At Maine People’s Alliance, Deputy Director Ben Chin believes this grant will be “transformative.” “This support will empower us to deepen our community engagement, strengthen partnerships, and advocate for policies that ensure every family has access to affordable, high-quality childcare.”

“Utah Care for Kids is thrilled for the investment from the Raising Child Care Fund to continue our work of uniting Utah around the public good of an equitable child care system,” said Brigette Weier, the Program Manager at  Utah Association for the Education of Young Children, “We will be able to double down on engaging historically silenced voices in child care and in our communities to lead and shape the movement.”

Virginia Organizing Executive Director Brian Johns stated that, “This support will allow our organizers to identify, recruit, and develop directly-affected parents and caregivers into our child care movement in Virginia.  We will be able to continue to build a powerful campaign to secure dedicated funding for the expansion of accessible affordable child care over these crucial years.” 

“To make lifting the burden of paying for child care off parents’ shoulders a priority, we have to invest in groups that amplify the voices of parents and child care providers to lead the movement,” said Rachel Schumacher, project director for the Raising Child Care Fund. “Child care educators are the workforce behind the workforce. Across the country they are joining with parents to win the public investments and program changes they know are needed to make the system work for all.”

Raising Child Care Fund expansion comes at a critical time for the cause. The American Rescue Plan (ARP) Act provided a boost of $40 Billion for early childhood education providers and increased access for families. But now all of the ARP child care boost in funding has been allowed to expire in Congress. The child care industry was already operating on slim margins, and the loss of this pandemic funding has already forced child care programs to close their doors or raise fees for families closure is states across the country.

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