Supporting Black Communities - The New York Community Trust

November 29, 2021 | By The New York Community Trust

Supporting Black Communities

CREATIVE COMMUNITY: Grantee Angela’s Pulse hosts a Story Circle event at NYU’s Hemispheric Institute of Performance, featuring Dancing While Black community members. Photo by Whitney Browne

The Trust recently gave more than $2.2 million in two-year grants—$1 million of which was provided by the Facebook company—to 15 Black-led nonprofits that are working on projects to mitigate the generational effects of racial injustice and support the city’s Black communities.

Leadership Training for Teens

Formed in 1965 as a recreation program for Black young people in the Queens neighborhoods of East Elmhurst and Corona, Elmcor today is a multi-service organization serving more than 7,000 adults and children. With a Trust grant of $200,000, Elmcor will create a new leadership training program for Black teenagers. Mentors will help participants learn about community organizing and work on social change projects.

Building Careers in Finance

Wall Street Bound will use $170,000 to prepare young Black men and women for careers in finance. It will give an introductory finance course and enroll trainees in a 10-week program to help them attain basic credentials to enter the finance industry, which is heavily concentrated in New York. It also will offer career counseling and an opportunity for trainees to network through the nonprofit’s online portal.

Mediating Conflict in Queens

To cultivate the use of conflict mediation, Community Mediation Services will use a $200,000 grant to recruit and train potential mediators from predominantly Black communities in Queens. Mediation can be valuable in several areas—from strengthening families to reducing litigation—so the nonprofit aims to make the field more representative of the diverse population of Queens, where currently less than a quarter of conflict mediators are Black.

Preserving Brooklyn History

Using a $164,000 Trust grant, BlackSpace will further develop the Brownsville Heritage House into a vital hub for preserving the history of the neighborhood. It will help residents archive physical and digital artifacts, and stage several events to encourage participation and kindle interest in Brownsville’s rich cultural heritage.

Other Grantees Supporting Black Communities Include: