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Non-profit

Middle East Children’s Alliance

Website:

www.mecaforpeace.org/
Location:

BERKELEY, CA
Tax ID:

94-3074600
Tax-Exempt Status:

501(c)(3)

Budget (2020):

Revenue: $3,400,898
Expenses: $2,642,612
Assets: $3,053,664
Type:

Anti-Israel activist group
Executive Director:

Zeiad Abbas Shamrouch
Formation:

1988

Middle East Children’s Alliance (MECA) provides humanitarian aid and financial support to Palestinian and other Middle Eastern children. [1] It operates a variety of projects in the West Bank, Gaza Strip, Lebanon, and Iraq, while engaging in anti-war and anti-Israel domestic activism. It has financial ties to Rockefeller Brothers Fund and Open Society Foundations, and is also associated with radical-left author and activist Noam Chomsky.

Founding and History

Middle East Children’s Alliance was founded in 1988 by Barbara Lubin and Howard Levine and expanded operations into Iraq in 1990. [2] Lubin had previously been active in protest movements against the Vietnam War and in support of greater accommodations for the disabled, and was a member of the Berkeley School Board from 1982 to 1996. Levine had been a writer for the San Francisco Examiner. [3]

MECA has a large board of advisors, including former U.S. Sen. James Abourezk (D-SD) and radical-left academic Noam Chomsky. [4]

Activities

The main goal of Middle East Children’s Alliance is to provide humanitarian aid to Palestinian, Iraqi, and Lebanese children while engaging in pro-Palestinian activism in America. [5] To achieve these ends, MECA partners with a variety of local organizations within the Middle East. MECA operates a college scholarship program in West Bank and Gaza as well as a program to provide clean water. [6]

In 2001, MECA chartered a bus and drove around the country in protest of American sanctions against Iraq. [7]

MECA has accused Israel of “apartheid,” “genocide,” and “ethnic cleansing” towards Palestinians. [8] In addition, MECA has engaged in other anti-Israel activism, including support for the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions movement, celebrating investigations into alleged Israeli war crimes, and signing multiple statements condemning Israel. [9]

Funding

Middle East Children’s Alliance received $3,329,330 in donations and grants in 2019. [10] From 2016-2023, the Rockefeller Brothers Fund donated $430,000 to MECA for the “Creative Palestinian Communities Fund,” which organizes political activities in Palestinian communities. [11] In 2020, MECA received a $400,000 grant from the Open Society Foundations, the private grantmaking foundation of billionaire George Soros. [12]

References

  1. “About Us.” Middle East Children’s Alliance. Accessed November 9, 2022. https://www.mecaforpeace.org/about-us/. ^
  2. “History.” Middle East Children’s Alliance. Accessed November 10, 2022. https://www.mecaforpeace.org/history/. ^
  3. Micky Duxbury. “Berkley Activist Barbara Lubin Shares the Wealth – and the Love – With Children in the Middle East.” The Monthly. Accessed November 10, 2022. https://themonthly.com/eastbayLife-06-09/. ^
  4. “Staff, Board, and Advisors.” Middle East Children’s Alliance. Accessed November 10, 2022. https://www.mecaforpeace.org/staff-board-and-advisors/ ^
  5. “About Us.” Middle East Children’s Alliance. Accessed November 9, 2022. https://www.mecaforpeace.org/about-us/. ^
  6. “History.” Middle East Children’s Alliance. Accessed November 10, 2022. https://www.mecaforpeace.org/history/ ^
  7. “History.” Middle East Children’s Alliance. Accessed November 10, 2022. https://www.mecaforpeace.org/history/. ^
  8. “Middle East Children’s Alliance (MECA).” NGO Monitor. February 15, 2022. https://www.ngo-monitor.org/ngos/middle_east_children_s_alliance_meca_/ ^
  9. “Middle East Children’s Alliance (MECA).” NGO Monitor. February 15, 2022. https://www.ngo-monitor.org/ngos/middle_east_children_s_alliance_meca_/ ^
  10. “Middle East Children’s Alliance.” GuideStar. Accessed November 9, 2022. https://www.guidestar.org/profile/94-3074600 ^
  11. “Middle East Children’s Alliance (MECA).” NGO Monitor. February 15, 2022. https://www.ngo-monitor.org/ngos/middle_east_children_s_alliance_meca_/ ^
  12. “Middle East Children’s Alliance (MECA).” NGO Monitor. February 15, 2022. https://www.ngo-monitor.org/ngos/middle_east_children_s_alliance_meca_/ ^
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Nonprofit Information

  • Accounting Period: June - May
  • Tax Exemption Received: February 1, 1994

    • Available Filings

    Period Form Type Total revenue Total functional expenses Total assets (EOY) Total liabilities (EOY) Unrelated business income? Total contributions Program service revenue Investment income Comp. of current officers, directors, etc. Form 990
    2020 Jun Form 990 $3,400,898 $2,642,612 $3,053,664 $235,652 N $3,329,330 $0 $32,412 $130,306 PDF
    2019 Jun Form 990 $2,611,872 $2,452,047 $2,445,058 $391,484 N $2,545,922 $0 $45,782 $205,710 PDF
    2018 Jun Form 990 $2,320,767 $2,176,565 $2,008,207 $114,458 N $2,323,557 $0 $12,002 $190,570 PDF
    2017 Jun Form 990 $2,774,603 $2,748,424 $1,910,452 $160,907 Y $2,711,047 $0 $44,700 $124,929 PDF
    2016 Jun Form 990 $2,169,590 $1,908,526 $1,780,635 $57,269 Y $2,131,352 $0 $6,922 $126,378
    2015 Jun Form 990 $3,336,819 $2,773,791 $1,472,812 $10,510 Y $3,282,063 $0 $13,697 $116,700 PDF
    2014 Jun Form 990 $1,474,763 $1,498,098 $907,666 $8,392 Y $1,443,280 $0 $20,078 $103,840 PDF
    2013 Jun Form 990 $1,628,927 $1,479,885 $899,697 $11,015 Y $1,628,437 $0 $6,833 $100,240 PDF
    2012 Jun Form 990 $1,546,024 $1,624,996 $749,674 $28,202 Y $1,515,040 $716 $13,164 $107,240 PDF
    2011 Jun Form 990 $2,822,426 $2,734,717 $817,590 $42,448 Y $2,801,018 $3,855 $11,030 $109,464 PDF

    Additional Filings (PDFs)

    Map image for Middle East Children’s Alliance

    Middle East Children’s Alliance

    1101 8TH ST STE 100
    BERKELEY, CA 94710-1208