Showing Up for Racial Justice (SURJ) Education Fund is a left-of-center activist group that works to mobilize low income and rural Americans into a multi-racial left-of-center coalition. The group claims that America is at risk of being taken over by a fascist and white supremacist authoritarian government and that Republicans are able to gain power because they have weaponized white supremacy. It opposes school choice and claims that white Christianity makes up one root of the white supremacy that supposedly governs the country. ^{1 2}

Founding and History

Showing Up for Racial Justice, the forerunner to the education fund, was established in 2009 in response to a supposed outpouring of racism and white supremacy in the wake of the election of President Barack Obama. SURJ’s 501(c)(4) arm Showing Up For Racial Justice, originally called Showing Up For Racial Justice Action, received tax exempt status in 2016 and the education fund charitable arm did the same in 2017. ^{2 3}

Financials

In 2022, Showing Up for Racial Justice Education Fund reported $2,082,261 in revenue, of which $2,080,718 was derived from contributions. It reported $2,398,155 in expenses, of which $1,744,598 was spent on employee salaries and benefits. It had a deficit of $315,894 and ended the year with $811,516 in net assets. ³

Organization Philosophy

Showing Up for Racial Justice Education Fund’s philosophy is premised on the idea that white supremacy and fascism are overtaking America and that Republicans are synonymous with these radical ideologies. Its stated purpose is to mobilize white people for left-of-center activism and cooperation with minorities. The group specifically says that it wants to get white people to join “multiracial liberatory movements.” ^{1 2}

Projects and Initiatives

As of 2023 the Showing Up for Racial Justice Education Fund’s efforts are focused on the American South. Its programs primarily work among low-income rural white communities to have them join a multi-racial revolutionary movement. ¹

SURJEF works with local chapters to engage in door knocking, phone banking, and other activism. ¹

SURJEF campaigns against school choice, arguing that it endangers transgender kids and leads to curriculum that hides America’s supposed racist history. She has stated that the Tea Party movement used “strategic racism” and that the re-election of Donald Trump would result in “an authoritarian takeover” of the government. ¹

SURJEF also maintains a faith outreach program and states that “white Christianity” is the foundation of white supremacy and that it plays a role in maintaining the supposedly racist status quo. ¹

Leadership

Erin Heaney is the executive director of Showing Up for Racial Justice Education Fund and its partner organization Showing Up for Racial Justice. She has been involved in the organization since 2015. She states that SURJ is working to prevent the removal of racially focused curriculum around the country and to stop the pushback on LGBT advances. ^{4 5}

Carla Wallace is a board member of SURJEF. Her profile declares her personal pronouns, states that she was born on Native American land, identifies as “owning class” and dedicated to class struggle, and notes that she is passionate about Palestinian activism and “queer liberation.” ⁶

1. “Our Programs.” SURJ Education Fund. Accessed September 7, 2024. https://surjed.org/programs/.
2. “The Showing Up for Racial Justice Education Fund.” SURJ Education Fund. Accessed September 7, 2024. https://surjed.org/.
3. Showing Up for Racial Justice Education Fund, Return of an organization exempt from taxation (Form 990) Part I, 2022.
4. Heaney, Erin. “Winning White People to the Fight Against the MAGA Right.” The Forge, July 11, 2023. https://forgeorganizing.org/article/winning-white-people-fight-against-maga-right.
5. Showing Up for Racial Justice Education Fund, Return of an organization exempt from taxation (Form 990) Part VII, 2022.
6. “Carla F Wallace.” SURJ Education Fund. Accessed September 7, 2024. https://surjed.org/person/carla-f-wallace/.