Morton K. and Jane Blaustein Foundation is a grantmaking organization that funds left-of-center organizations through its programs. It is a part of the Blaustein Philanthropic Group, a collection of four family foundations that belong to the heirs of Louis Blaustein, a Lithuanian Jew who co-founded the American Oil Company (Amoco) in 1910. ¹ Morton Katz Blaustein, one of the heirs, is one of the founders of the foundation and was a part of major organizations such as the American Jewish Committee. ²

Grantmaking

The Blaustein Foundation has three main program areas: the environment, race, and immigration. The immigration program area gives grants to organizations that support liberal expansionist immigration policies. Grantees include the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), ¹ an almost 100-year-old left-of-center activist organization focused on civil liberties related issues, ³ and the American Immigration Council, ¹ a left-of-center advocacy organization in favor of expanding immigration in the United States and granting legal status to some populations of illegal immigrants. ⁴

The environment program area focuses on giving grants to organizations who advocate for environmentalist policy change at the city, state, and federal levels. Many left-of-center environmentalist organizations have received grants via this program such as Our Climate Education Fund and the Chesapeake Climate Action Network. ¹

The race program area gives grants to organizations that focus on issues related to race in the United States. Past grantees include the National Economic and Social Rights Initiative ¹ (now known as Partners for Dignity and Rights), an activist organization that advocates for left-of-center policies regarding economics, social issues, labor unionism, education, health care and housing. ⁵

The Blaustein Foundation has also given grants to major left-of-center organizations such as the New Israel Fund, ⁶ a grantmaking nonprofit that supports left-leaning social policies related to Israel, ⁷ and the Tides Foundation, ⁶ a grantmaking organization and major pass-through funder to numerous left-of-center nonprofits. ⁸

People

Morton Katz Blaustein is one of the founders of the Blaustein Foundation. He got into the oil business in 1953 and was the president and chairman of the board of the American Trading and Production Corporation from 1970 until his death in 1990. Blaustein was vice president of the American Jewish Committee, ² a Jewish advocacy organization that engages in the communication of Jewish values to the public and supports global diplomacy and political advocacy. ⁹ He was also a trustee of organizations like Johns Hopkins University and The Associated: Jewish Community Federation of Baltimore. ²

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2. “Family History.” Blaustein Philanthropic Group. Last modified April 10, 2023. https://blaufund.org/family-history-2/
3. “ACLU History.” American Civil Liberties Union. Accessed May 25, 2023. https://www.aclu.org/about/aclu-history.
4. “About the American Immigration Council.” American Immigration Council. Last modified June 8, 2022. https://www.americanimmigrationcouncil.org/about/our-mission
5. “Our Work.” Partners for Dignity & Rights. Last modified June 28, 2022. https://dignityandrights.org/our-work/
6. “MORTON K AND JANE BLAUSTEIN FOUNDATION INC.” Grantmakers.io. Accessed May 26, 2023. https://www.grantmakers.io/profiles/v0/521607300-morton-k-and-jane-blaustein-foundation-inc/
7. “FAQs.” New Israel Fund (NIF). Accessed May 26, 2023. https://www.nif.org/about/faqs
8. “Partner Directory.” Tides. Last modified December 2, 2022. https://www.tides.org/impact-partners/explore-our-partners/
9. “Who We Are.” American Jewish Committee. Accessed May 23, 2023. https://www.ajc.org/whoweare