ImmiGRANT Assistance Fund

Hi, my name is Rich McKeon and I'm a public interest immigration attorney in New Jersey and a former philanthropy professional, where I was personally responsible for hundreds of millions in grants made to nonprofits.

But this endeavor is different. It's in direct response to what I'm seeing on the ground, working with families as a public interest immigration attorney in New Jersey. I wanted to find a way to help improve the lives of immigrants and help them push back against an administration that pretends that the due process rights provided for in the Constitution do not exist.

This fund plans to respond to the immediate needs of immigrants. These needs could include helping immigrants pay for things to help their immigration case have a better chance of success. For example, it could pay for physical or psychological evaluations to prove that they experienced trauma in their home countries and how they would be harmed if forced to return to those countries. It could pay for immediate needs of families to give an immigrant time to fully pursue their legal case without worrying about their families' immediate needs. The key to this fund will be its flexibility. We will shift course when necessary. We will learn as we go. We will invite partners from throughout the state to be involved.

Why Are We Starting In New Jersey? New Jersey is one of the top five states where immigrants live. The needs are great and demand for services far exceeds supply. In my own organization, we turn away people for consultations every week. And we even turn away people who have strong cases simply due to our own capacity. A fund like this cannot address these capacity issues, but it can make a difference to families who need help. And it may choose to advocate for policy change at some point down the road.

I hope you'll join me on this journey. Donations will be critical. In addition, we want to engage people who can help us review requests for assistance, highlight emerging issues, etc. I've already started to build a list of public interest immigration attorneys and expect to continue to build this cadre as we raise funds. If we do this right, it will truly be a collaborative effort. I commit to providing a regular list of "investments" to all donors. These are investments in families, investments in resistance, and investments in compassion. This is one small way that we can all resist the feelings of powerlessness. Please join us.