Native Movement

In 2022, the Native Movement received $675,000 from the National Philanthropic Trust, ⁴ $550,000 from the left-of-center NDN Collective, ⁵ and $519,000 from the left-of-center Tides Foundation. ⁶

History and Leadership

The Native Movement was formed in 2003 in Arctic Village, Alaska. ¹ In 2007, the Native Movement was given nonprofit status by the Internal Revenue Service. ^{7 8}

As of July 2024, Enei Begaye is the Native Movement’s executive director. The organization has other leadership roles focused on the far-left issues of gender justice, environmental justice, climate justice, and what the organization refers to as “policy justice.” ¹

Activities and Funding

The Native Movement is a left-of-center Native American and Alaska Native activist organization. The Fairbanks, Alaska-based organization focuses its activism on action and advocacy campaigns, community education efforts, and directly supporting community affiliate programs. ¹

The organization promotes what it calls an “Indigenous worldview,” is encouraged by the critical race theory-based Justice40 Initiative, ⁹ and supports other activist organizations that support its far-left activism. ³

On its website, the Native Movement makes a land acknowledgement claiming that Alaska is located on traditional territories of Native tribes. ¹⁰ It also supports other organizations in drafting “land acknowledgements” ¹¹ and produces resources for other organizations about so-called “decolonizing advocacy.” ¹²

The organization is partnered with the far-left activist organization NDN Collective ¹³ and has opposed the opening of millions of acres of land controlled by the U.S. Department of the Interior’s Bureau of Land Management to leasing. ¹⁴

The Native Movement aims to establish what it considers “justice” across Alaska. ¹⁰ It envisions a society that embraces what the organization considers to be “Indigenous values of reciprocity and respect with all beings.” ³

In October 2023, the organization called for an immediate Israeli ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas war that began following Hamas terrorist attacks in Israel on October 7, 2023. The group called the war a “U.S. aided genocide” and says that it stands in solidarity with Palestinian activists. ¹³

The Native Movement encouraged its supporters to reply to the White House Council on Environmental Quality’s posting for public comment regarding updates to the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) in which it identified tribal sovereignty and the far-left concept of environmental justice as key issues to consider in comments. ¹⁵

In 2022, the Native Movement spent $3,245,052 to promote far-left social justice and economic justice priorities in Alaska. ²

In December 2021, the Native Movement was one of more than 100 groups that co-signed an open letter opposing nuclear power production credits in the Biden administration’s Build Back Better Act spending bill. The letter attacked nuclear power as an “unproven and unnecessary” technology and a “harmful energy source” that would extend demand for fossil fuels. ¹⁶

Grantmaking

The Native Movement issues grants to organizations primarily focused on Native American and Alaska-focused causes. ¹⁷

In 2022, the Native Movement made a $60,000 grant to the left-of-center New Venture Fund. That year, Native Movement also made grants of $83,500 to the Alaska Public Interest Research Group and $25,000 to Identity Inc. ¹⁷

Funding

The Native Movement receives funding form individual donations and grants. ¹⁰ In 2022, the Native Movement reported revenue of $7,224,960 and expenses of $4,350,680. The organization reported revenue of $6,049,119 and expenses of $5,443,160 in 2021. ¹⁸

In 2022, the Native Movement received $675,000 from the National Philanthropic Trust, ⁴ $550,000 from the far-left NDN Collective, ⁵ and $519,000 from the left-of-center Tides Foundation. ⁶

The organization also received $583,333 from ImpactAssets Inc. in 2021 ¹⁹ and $50,000 from The Seventh Generation Fund for Indigenous Peoples in 2016. ²⁰