Bread and Roses Community Fund is a Philadelphia-based left-of-center mobilization organization that was formed in 1977. This group helps develop local organizations into movements that advocate for “the liberation of all people”, especially fighting against racism. ¹

History

The Bread and Roses Fund, originally called the Peoples Fund, was formed in 1971 by other activists and donors. The founders were associated with, members of, or supported newly formed left-wing and radical-left groups that lacked funding. These groups included the National Lawyers Guild, the Black Panther Party, and Women United for Abortion Rights. ²

The Peoples Fund was changed to Bread and Roses Fund in 1977 as it transitioned into tax-exempt status. The new name came from the slogan of striking textile workers in Massachusetts as they fought for overtime pay and better working conditions and a poem written by James Oppenheim which was published in 1911. ³

Projects

The Giving Project builds leadership and donates money to local organizations that promote left-wing and radical-left social change in the Philadelphia area. ⁴

The Racial and Economic Justice Fund financially assists groups that use community organizing to support left-of-center economic and ethnic-interest social policy locally, regionally, and internationally. ⁵

Future Fund encourages other organizations working on racially sensitive issues to develop strategies to enhance social justice activism.

Phoebus Criminal Justice Initiative gives grants to activists who want to make the criminal justice system more lenient towards offenders and defendants. It targets groups that promote left-of-center approaches to police accountability, oppose allegedly racially-biased sentencing policies, criticize the use of for-profit prisons, fight criminalization of youth, and seek to abolish the death penalty. ⁶

Jonathan Lax Scholarship for Gay Men encourages gay men to continue to get educated and aim to be productive in society. With this support, the fund provides support to gay men to be comfortable about their sexual orientation and to be role models for other gay men who would like to come out about their sexuality. ⁷

Opportunity Fund provides emergency funds for left-of-center mobilization organizations that have special ongoing projects and activities such as demonstrations and rallies, coalition efforts, conferences, or forums. ⁸

1. “About.” Bread & Roses Community Fund. Accessed March 15, 2020. https://breadrosesfund.org/about/
2. “About.” Bread & Roses Community Fund. Accessed March 15, 2020. https://breadrosesfund.org/about/
3. “About.” Bread & Roses Community Fund. Accessed March 15, 2020. https://breadrosesfund.org/about/
4. Bread & Roses Community Fund. Return of Organization Exempt from Income Tax (Form 990). 2018. Accessed May 5, 2020.
5. Bread & Roses Community Fund. Return of Organization Exempt from Income Tax (Form 990). 2018. Accessed May 5, 2020.
6. Bread & Roses Community Fund. Return of Organization Exempt from Income Tax (Form 990). 2018. Accessed May 5, 2020.
7. Bread & Roses Community Fund. Return of Organization Exempt from Income Tax (Form 990). 2018. Accessed May 5, 2020.
8. Bread & Roses Community Fund. Return of Organization Exempt from Income Tax (Form 990). 2018. Accessed May 5, 2020.