Reflections From Our Pilot Year: California Healing Justice Fund

On April 17, 2025, dozens of funders came together to hear reflections, learnings, and history from our pilot year of funding through the California Healing Justice Fund (CAHJF). Guadalupe Chavez, Deputy Director of the Justice Teams Network and member of the CAHJF Movement Advisors, opened the space by leading the group in a moment of reconnection and centering. These grounding, somatic practices help us reconnect to ourselves and each other as humans, as neighbors, and as comrades amidst storms of manufactured political and cultural chaos. We encourage you to participate in this embodied practice, catch up on the impactful presentations you may have missed, and read more about the session below. 

Healing is truly the pathway to any kind of change and transformation we want to make on either a personal, collective, institutional or systemic level.

Mia Mingus, SOIL A Transformative Justice Project

A PRACTICE OF THE FUTURE

In 2021, a group of funders sought feedback from movement leaders on what support was missing on the ground. The concept of Healing Justice was raised as an integral part of movement work that has been– so far– underfunded and unrecognized as a key aspect of our collective liberation work. In the draft definition shared during the briefing, Healing Justice is described as a practice of nurturing community leadership and creating new systems and structures that support our visions of the future. This is distinctly different from a strategy, which describes an approach to solving a problem. Rather, Healing Justice is a lifelong practice rooted in community care, transformation, and collective liberation.

“Healing justice is something that’s embodied… it’s not simply a pop-up clinic. It is a journey to creating alternatives to what has been given to us in the past.”

Guadalupe Chavez, Justice Teams Network

Despite the clear need to embody Healing Justice as a personal and organizational value over the long term, there are clear immediate needs to be met in order to maintain a thriving movement dedicated to collective liberation. Economic inequality has never been more visible, especially for BIPOC families. The ability for families to meet their basic needs means they have capacity to be engaged, contribute, and dream liberation into a reality. In this way, Healing Justice is simultaneously a lifelong practice, as well as an immediate action. 

“Our folks are struggling…They want to be in this work, but they are struggling to put food on the table.”

Kimberley Aceves-Iniguez, RYSE Center

MOVING WITH INTENTION

The process of defining Healing Justice within the context of our current political and cultural reality was a significant undertaking during this first year of building CAHJF. Equally important, and nuanced, was deciding how to get the work done. As Kimberley Aceves-Iniguez described during the briefing, embodying Healing Justice is complicated and requires negotiating between building for the long term at the same time as addressing critical, immediate needs. Creating a space where the Advisors could grapple with these seemingly competing priorities required trust, flexibility, and care for each other. She reflected, “this process for me was super healing” 

as she described the unique opportunity to build a space that intentionally embodied Healing Justice principles. 

“We have to create the conditions that allow us to transform… and comfort and transformation do not live on the same block. We have to build up the skills to be able to not only tolerate discomfort, but desire it.”

Mia Mingus, SOIL A Transformative Justice Project

As funders, we approached the selection of Advisors with the same level of care and consideration. The funders knew collaboration was going to be a key element of the process, and sought partners– both within the Advisor and funder cohorts– who understood that a central quality of the work was to counter the power consolidation that is prevalent throughout the philanthropic sector. This radical act of justice is one of the most significant ways funders can support the movement for our collective liberation and supports the notion that how we get work done contributes meaningfully to that goal. 

“It’s so important to not forget the justice portion of Healing Justice…what are we trying to build?” 

Grisanti Avendaño, YO California

MEET THE YEAR 1 GRANTEES

The Movement Advisors gathered in the fall of 2024 to review applications to the Healing Justice Fund and make grant recommendations for the first year of funding. The pool of applicants consisted of small, grassroots organizations– some of whom have never applied for philanthropic funding before. In the end, the Advisors recommended over $500,000 in grants that support the organization’s general operating or their rapid response program. 

Rapid Response Grants

Ocho Semillas $25,000

Anti Police Terror Project $22,000

RYSE Center $22,000

Black Organizing Project $10,000

GET INVOLVED

The Movement Advisors carried a clear message on behalf of our community partners who are doing movement work on the ground: incorporate Healing Justice into your framework, and provide long-term, reliable funding. Especially under the current administration, there was a direct ask to consider making 4-year grants, which can sustain organization’s momentum throughout a presidential term we know will be particularly harmful. As funders, we are familiar with the ways the philanthropic sector can harm the movements we seek to support, and it is time for funders to rise to the occasion and build mutual, effective partnerships with our community. 

“The spaces that are created by philanthropy are often deeply competitive and can be harmful.”

Malaika Parker, Black Organizing Project

We are emboldened by the momentum gained during our pilot year of mobilizing resources through the Healing Justice Fund and it has been an honor to share our Year 1 success with our networks and communities. We invite you to join us! Donations to the fund can be made through the link below. If you would like to get involved further or be a part of the Funder Coordinating Committee, please contact Melanie Havelin at mhavelin@johnmlloyd.org. 

THANK YOU TO OUR YEAR 1 MOVEMENT ADVISORS & FUNDERS!

We would like to extend our immense gratitude to our Movement Advisors, who generously shared their wisdom and visions with us as they led the creation and execution of CAHJF. Without the support from our inaugural funders, this work would not be possible. Thank you!

DONATE TO THE HEALING JUSTICE FUND