Atlanta, Oct 28, 2021 – The Asian American Advancing Justice-Atlanta is amongst the 12 groups in Georgia to receive The Arthur M. Blank Family Foundation's $10 million grants for their civil and voting rights advocacy work.
AAJA-Atlanta awarded two year grants worth $550,000 for their AAPI civil rights work in Georgia and Southeast.
Each of the 12 groups is working to ensure eligible Americans can vote and participate in the democratic process, with a focus on Georgia and the Southeast.
The money is the first of a set of grants from the foundation’s Democracy portfolio. In addition to democracy, the foundation is focusing on the environment and youth development.
“We believe the right to vote is sacred and must be protected,” Chairman Arthur Blank said in a statement. “Our democracy is made stronger when we hear from all Americans on the issues of our day whether they be national or local. This must happen more often than the presidential election cycle.”
The two-year grants will be used by the organizations to hire more staff, create new programs, and expand existing ones throughout the state.
While the grants will help the organizations do more, they will also enable the Blank Foundation to gauge the best investments and long-term strategies that make voting easier and get people more involved in their communities.
The Blank Foundation has awarded more than $800 million in grants over the past 25 years and has committed to significantly accelerating the impact of its philanthropy over the next decade. Arthur Blank is a co-founder of The Home Depot. He currently owns the Atlanta Falcons, Atlanta United, the PGA Tour Superstore, and Atlanta’s Mercedes-Benz stadium.
