Florida Justice Center Announced as Recipient of Vote Your Voice Field Strengthening Grant

Florida Justice Center Announced as Recipient of Vote Your Voice Field Strengthening Grant

Southern Poverty Law Center and the Community Foundation of Greater Atlanta award three-year grant to legal aid organization to expand voting rights restoration services.

Atlanta, GA (October 29, 2023) –

The Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) and the Community Foundation for Greater Atlanta (Foundation) announced Florida Justice Center as one of 68 organizations selected to receive grants through the Vote Your Voice initiative. These grants, called field strengthening grants, are designed to enable organizations in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana and Mississippi to expand their voter outreach, civic engagement and leadership development activities in communities of color. Florida Justice Center was awarded a three-year grant to fund expansion of its voting rights restoration services for people with a felony conviction.

The Foundation and SPLC launched Vote Your Voice in 2020 as a $30 million initiative to help ensure full voter participation and fair representation for Black communities and other communities of color across the Deep South. The program was later expanded to a 10-year, $100 million initiative, which also includes support for civic engagement activities, leadership development, and organizational capacity building. During this cycle of grant funding, Vote Your Voice focused on organizations working to engage young adults of color across the five key states as well as voters of color in non-metro areas.

“We are excited that these organizations recognize the important work of Florida Justice Center with a multiyear funding opportunity to help justice-impacted people navigate Florida’s confusing voter reenfranchisement process. It is vital to our democracy to ensure that those who register to vote are doing so legally and with confidence that they will not be arrested for exercising this basic constitutional right,” said Florida Justice Center executive director Jonathan Bleiweiss.

“Full voter representation means just that—widening the net so that everyone, those who live outside our major cities or hail from communities that historically were prevented from exercising their right to vote—is brought into the democratic process,” said Ayana Gabriel, vice president of Community Impact for the Community Foundation for Greater Atlanta. “The Community Foundation for Greater Atlanta is proud and excited to partner with the SPLC in supporting these very worthy organizations, who are dedicated to ensuring that all of us have a seat at the table in this democracy.”

“Voting is foundational to our democracy – and that foundation is under attack across the Deep South,” said Margaret Huang, president and CEO of the Southern Poverty Law Center. “The work of these grantees is paramount to ensuring that the voices of voters of color are heard in the 2024 local and national elections and beyond. Together, we will build a stronger, more inclusive democracy where everyone can thrive.”

Learn More

Learn more about the Vote Your Voice Grant at splcenter.org/vote-your-voice

Donate to support voting rights in Florida at FLJC.org/Donate

Learn more about Florida Justice Center’s voting rights restoration services at FLJC.org/services/voting-rights

SPLC and Community Foundation of Greater Atlanta press release

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