Art for Justice Board members Agnes Gund, Darren Walker and Ava DuVernay. Photo courtesy of Ford Foundation.
Dear Art for Justice Grantee Partners, Allied Donors and Friends,

I hope you’re holding steady at the end of another difficult year. Wishing you and your loved ones a peaceful holiday season.

Our community has faced hardships from the ongoing Covid pandemic, incidences of racial injustice and police brutality, and the slow pace of change to our punitive carceral system. Yet advocates, artists and allied donors have been diligent to protect hard-fought gains in policy and narrative change. As a movement to end mass incarceration, we will not rest until the criminal legal system has been transformed and there’s a future of shared safety for all. Though our country is divided on many fronts, we remain committed to creating a society in which every person’s humanity and dignity are recognized.
Art for Justice Board member Catherine Gund and artist Julie Mehretu. Photo by Erin Baino.

Here are some highlights from 2021:
* In a demonstration of the rising salience of the Fund’s visionary leaders, not one but three Art for Justice Fund grantee partners – Nicole Fleetwood, Reginald Dwayne Betts, and Desmond Meade -- were named MacArthur ‘Genius’ Fellows for their contributions to securing the rights of justice system impacted people and providing healing.

* A4J has made over 287 grants to individuals and organizations, totaling $92 million since launching in 2017. The third iteration of the Fund’s Activating Art and Advocacy grants were given to 32 different partnerships that reframe public safety through the lens of cooperation, mutual aid, accountability, and reparations. One of our most valuable learnings is that visionary projects emerge organically when artists and advocates can connect and build a trusted network across sectors.

Grantee partner, Susan Burton, Founder of A New Way of Life and Art for Justice’s Rise Wilson.
* Along with lifting up artists and advocates, the Fund coordinates with other donors to leverage support for the movement’s most urgent needs. We’ve helped raise over $2 M to address the dire human rights crisis at NYC’s Rikers Island jail and renew efforts to close this facility. Most of the 250 women detained there are too sick and poor to afford cash bail. We’re proud to support Women’s Community Justice Association to offer safe housing and trauma informed care that enables women to rebuild their lives.

* With gifts from artist Julie Mehretu and philanthropist MacKenzie Scott, we secured sufficient funds for a sixth and final year of Art for Justice grantmaking that will end in June of 2023. The extraordinary generosity of Art for Justice’s allied donors has now enabled us to use our connections and expertise to directly galvanize resources for partners and their initiatives.

Catherine Gund, Claudia Rankine, Stephanie Ingrassia and Art for Justice’s Helena Huang. Photo by Erin Baino.

I know many were saddened by the recent passing of author, teacher and activist bell hooks. She wrote, “Rarely, if ever, are any of us healed in isolation. Healing is an act of communion.” Those words ring true for me. I’m grateful for the solace and inspiration this community provides.

Warmly,
Agnes Gund

About Art for Justice Fund
Art for Justice was founded in 2017 by Agnes Gund to end mass incarceration in the United States and the racism that drives it. This initiative, which will conclude in 2023, has already disbursed $90 million to radically reimagine and build a future of shared safety for all. To date, Art for Justice has made grants to 200+ artists, advocates and organizations that are transforming the criminal legal system.
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