Lyft’s New York Racial Justice Alliance has awarded transportation access and funding grants to seven New York City-based nonprofit organizations working to address the impacts of systemic racism.
Funding grantees will be able to use the money to advance their programs and mission, while transportation access grantees will be able to use Lyft ride credits to access things like groceries, healthcare, and other essential services.
“As a company, we want to make sure race no longer predicts opportunities, outcomes, or the distribution of resources for Black, Indigenous, and other residents of color in New York,” said Larry Gallegos, Community Strategist for Lyft. “By providing residents who have historically been disinvested from access to transportation, as well as additional resources, it unlocks doors they may not have previously been able to open.”
Awardees include:
- Avenues for Justice, which has diverted thousands of NYC youth from incarceration since 1979;
- The August Project, which elevates the stories of Haitians and the Haitian diaspora;
- Corbin Hill Food Project, a Harlem-based non-profit;
- Korean American Family Service Center, a primary dual agency that addresses domestic violence and sexual assault victims from a combined prevention and intervention perspective;
- Mekong NYC, a social justice organization that brings dignity and value to the lives of Southeast Asians in the Bronx and throughout New York City;
- Murals for Good, a dedicated group of New Yorkers who curate and design mural art;
- New Ground, which is committed to educating and empowering families and veterans who are caught in the vicious cycle of homelessness.
Lyft launched the New York Racial Justice Alliance in June to create a more racially equitable society and to proactively empower and leverage the expertise of communities that have historically been divested from. The alliance is made up of several reputable organizations, including the Chinese-American Planning Council, UrbanUpbound, Arab American Association of New York, BronxWorks, the Haitian American Caucus and the Hispanic Federation.
“Hispanic Federation is proud to partner with Lyft and other members of the Racial Justice Alliance to ensure community members have multiple options for transportation when they need to buy groceries, get to work, find a healthcare facility and so much more,” said Frankie Miranda, President and CEO of the Hispanic Federation. “Together, we’re making it easier for Latinos to get from point A to point B and to take care of their basic needs.”
“Unreliable and inaccessible transportation has served as a barrier to communities of color for far too long. I am glad to be a part of Lyft’s Racial Justice Alliance to help alleviate some of the systemic issues plaguing our communities. Providing organizations with these grants helps empower individuals at the most grassroots level,” said Bishop Mitchell Taylor, Co-Founder and CEO, Urban Upbound.
“My experience as a Board Member for the Racial Justice Alliance program has been incredibly rewarding. I am grateful to Lyft for providing access to communities of color facing transportation barriers. This support has been crucial to our organization’s work over the past several months,” said Eileen Torres, Executive Director of BronxWorks.
“CPC is excited to be a part of Lyft‘s Racial Justice Alliance and help provide cash grants and ride code grants for organizations doing work in the Racial Justice space. The pandemic highlighted many of the existing inequities in the city and it is critical now more than ever for companies like Lyft to work with CPC and others to help address these systemic issues,” said Wayne Ho, President and CEO, Chinese-American Planning Council.
“Participating in the Racial Justice Alliance has been a wonderful opportunity for the Haitian American Caucus-US to support community organizations throughout NYC that are doing meaningful and important work. We are honored to partner with Lyft and the other Board Members in this innovate initiative; addressing issues of transportation, affordability and equity in the delivering of services and programs, the grant program will make a real impact to recipients” said M. Joane Pillard, Director of Marketing & Community Engagement, Haitian American Caucus-US.
In all, a total of $50,000 in grants will be awarded by the end of the year.
Lyft
Lyft was founded in 2012 and is one of the largest transportation networks in the United States and Canada. As the world shifts to transportation-as-a-service, Lyft is at the forefront of this massive societal change. Its transportation network includes the largest shared mobility network in the United States and brings together rideshare, bikes, scooters, car rentals and transit all in one app. Lyft is singularly driven by its mission: to improve people’s lives with the world’s best transportation.
Photo credit: Corbin Hill Food Project.
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