Voqal is excited to announce six grants to organizations working in Chicago to strengthen the community through progressive organizing and media. The grants of $50,000 to Grassroots Illinois Action, $50,000 to One People’s Campaign, $50,000 to City Bureau, $50,000 to The People’s Lobby, $50,000 to Asian American Midwest Progressives and $25,000 to The Hoodoisie reflect Voqal’s commitment to supporting a vibrant progressive media and organizing landscape in Chicago.
Grassroots Illinois Action
Grassroots Illinois Action educates the public about policy issues impacting working families, engages in grassroots lobbying and organizes community-based electoral strategies. Voqal’s support is assisting Grassroots Illinois Action in providing Black, Latinx and working-class white grassroots leaders the tools they need to win political power in their communities.
One People’s Campaign
One People’s Campaign works to ensure that all types of people are at the table when important policy decisions are made and that the table is remade when it is set up to exclude people. Voqal’s grant is supporting One People’s Campaign’s work to ensure voters in Chicago are engaged during the 2020 elections.
City Bureau
City Bureau is a civic media organization dedicated to repairing Chicago’s local information ecosystem and developing new models for media production that are equitable, participatory and responsive to the public. Voqal’s grant is supporting City Bureau’s efforts to build on the success of its Documenters program and Civic Reporting Fellowship.
The People’s Lobby
The People’s Lobby is a membership-driven organization of people across the Chicago region that work together to build widespread support for public policies and candidates that put racial and gender justice and the needs of people and the planet before the interests of big corporations and the very rich. With support from Voqal, The People’s Lobby is working to recruit and train hundreds of leaders, talk to thousands of voters and win concrete victories that will improve lives in low-income and working-class communities and communities of color.
Asian American Midwest Progressives
Asian American Midwest Progressives builds political power through collective advocacy and electoral organizing to achieve racial equity. Voqal’s grant will help support Asian American Midwest Progressives as it organizes and mobilizes Asian Americans in support of democracy reform, immigrant rights and progressive candidates.
The Hoodoisie
The Hoodoisie is a livestreamed news show and web series that provides “block-optic” and radical perspective on culture and politics. The show is filmed in front of a live audience in a different gentrified Chicago neighborhood every month. Voqal’s grant will help support The Hoodoisie’s 2020 season.
“We are excited to support these organizations as they continue their work to create a more socially equitable community in Chicago,” said Voqal board member Barbara Iverson.
To learn more about the organizations Voqal supports visit our grants page.