Women’s Foundation Awards $425,000 in Fund for Safety Grants

Today, the Women’s Foundation of Minnesota (WFM) announced $425,000 in general operating grants to 22 organizations through its Fund for Safety. The fund resources organizations and programs working to keep our communities safer by addressing gender-based violence—including trafficking, harassment, sexual violence, intimate partner violence, and systemic violence.

In this cohort of Fund for Safety partners, 27 percent are in rural and Greater Minnesota, and 68 percent are led by Black, Indigenous, and women of color.

All Women’s Foundation grants support general operating expenses, which provide greater flexibility for organizations. Funding general operations over multiple years is crucial for organizations to build stability around community-sustaining programs.

Grantee-Partners:

Ain Dah Yung Center (Saint Paul) | $20,000 – To continue support of culturally responsive case management through the center’s Zhawenimaa Safe Harbor and Youth Trafficking Prevention program for Indigenous youth facing sexual exploitation and homelessness, and to engage men and boys as allies in preventing sexual violence.

Committee Against Domestic Abuse (CADA) (Mankato) | $20,000 – To implement a new service model to better serve victims and survivors with comprehensive services as the region’s sole provider for survivors of domestic and sexual violence.

Dakota Wicohan (Morton) | $20,000 — To support youth programs for prevention of gender-based violence, aligned with cultural knowledge and teachings on Dakota ways. Funding will also help expand collaborations and outreach for the March 2025 Missing & Murdered Indigenous Relatives walk.

Domestic Abuse Project (Minneapolis) | $20,000 — To lead implementation of new processes that address Minneapolis police response to domestic violence and provide trainings for officers.

GFWC Nevis Women’s Club (Nevis) | $20,000 — To support community events about gender-based violence and an interactive empowerment course on healthy relationships for Park Rapids/Nevis and Leech Lake Tribe high schools.

Immigrant Law Center of Minnesota (Saint Paul) | $20,000 — To support the New Beginnings Project, which assists immigrant survivors of domestic violence or other serious crimes, and their qualified family members, in obtaining immigration status.

Love First Community Engagement (Saint Paul) | $20,000 — To expand the Glow & Grow program to address harmful gender norms and empower Black girls and young women through workshops, safe spaces, outreach, and mentorship.

Men as Peacemakers (MAP) (Duluth) | $20,000 – To address the root causes of gender-based violence and create the conditions for everyone in the community to thrive, with programming based in MAP’s We Are All Connected framework.

Minnesota African Women’s Coalition (Lakeville) | $20,000 — To support a series of workshops for immigrant and refugee families in understanding abuse, recognizing their legal rights, and navigating mental health, economic empowerment, and housing systems.

Minnesota African Women’s Association (MAWA) (Brooklyn Center) | $20,000 – To resource African Youth Violence Prevention Project pilot program, which adapts key youthwork curriculums into culturally specific programming for African teen boys and girls to prevent emotional abuse, sexual harassment, and sexual abuse of African girls in African communities.

Our Space (Minneapolis) | $20,000 — To establish a regional navigator initiative across Minnesota, ensuring trans people have access to resources and support.

OutFront Minnesota Community Services (Saint Paul) | $20,000 – To support OutFront’s Anti-Violence Program, Education Equity department, and policy and organizing work that serves thousands of LGBTQ+ Minnesotans and allies each year.

Phumulani MN African Women Against Violence (Minneapolis) | $20,000 — To create and distribute an informational booklet with resources, legal rights, and safety planning, and to establish a Committee on Sexual and Gender-Based Violence.

QUEERSPACE collective (Minneapolis) | $20,000 — To support intergenerational mentorship for 2SLGBTQIA+ youth, educational trainings for caregivers, mentors, and youth-serving groups.

Reviving the Islamic Sisterhood for Empowerment (RISE) (Minneapolis) | $20,000 — To support self-defense workshops to enhance personal safety and empowerment for Muslim women, and wellness retreat for RISE staff.

Sex Workers Outreach Project (SWOP) (Minneapolis) | $20,000 — To support a decriminalization campaign, a stripper guild, and harm reduction outreach to reduce systemic harms and violence against sex workers.

Sexual Violence Center (Minneapolis) | $20,000 — To support the 24/7 crisis hotline, legal and medical advocacy for survivors, trauma-informed counseling services, and outreach to underserved communities.

Somali Youth and Family Development Center (SOMFAM) (Minneapolis) | $5,000 – To support financial literacy and leadership training with East African women and girls to mitigate poverty as a risk factor for sexual violence, and education about healthy models of masculinity with high school boys.

Standpoint (Saint Paul) | $20,000 — To support the Action line for the organization, formerly known as Battered Women’s Legal Advocacy Project, which serves thousands of victim-survivors of domestic and sexual violence, their advocates, and attorneys each year.

Terebinth Refuge (Waite Park) | $20,000 – To continue support for the strengths-based, trauma-informed holistic services for trafficked and sexually exploited women through Terebinth’s shelter program, transitional housing program, and employment readiness program, along with a prevention curriculum.

Transforming Generations (Saint Paul) | $20,000 — To resource the queer justice program with support and connection within the LGBTQ+ Hmong and Southeast Asian community, school-based advocacy to promote positive and healthy relationship-building, and engaging Hmong men in ending and preventing gender-based violence.

Violence Prevention Center (Grand Marais) | $20,000 — To support and expand education and outreach, including on healthy relationships and sexual abuse prevention, with a focus on local schools and youth programming.

Women’s Advocates (Saint Paul) | $20,000 — To support a comprehensive circle of support that includes sexual abuse interventions and support systems for LGBTQ+ victim-survivors.