Here Are 5 of the Top Funders Supporting AAPI Causes

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Asian American and Pacific Islanders (AAPI) are the fastest growing racial or ethnic group in the United States. According to the latest U.S. Census, AAPI people make up almost 6% of the population, a total of 22 million people. Pew Research Center estimates that by 2060, the Asian population in the U.S. will reach 46 million

The U.S. has a long history of anti-Asian racism, including racially motivated attacks and racist federal policies, but there’s been a significant increase in anti-Asian violence and hate since the outset of the COVID-19 pandemic. As of this March, Stop AAPI Hate has received nearly 11,000 reports of hate incidents, the majority of which were reported by AAPI women. More than 16% of reported incidents involved physical assault. On March 16, 2021, eight people — six of whom were Asian women — died in a shooting at an Atlanta spa. In April of that same year, a gunman opened fire at a FedEx facility in Indianapolis, which left eight people dead, four of whom were Sikh.

Like other racial and ethnic groups, AAPIs have been disproportionately impacted by the pandemic, although this has received little attention. A UCLA study, for example, found that Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islanders are three times more likely to contract COVID-19 than white Americans and almost twice as likely to die from it. Additionally, a McKinsey study reported that almost 2 million AAPIs are frontline and essential workers. Asian Americans make up more than 20% of all U.S. physicians and surgeons and almost 10% of all registered nurses. 

Although research shows that Asian Americans as a whole are economically better off than the overall U.S. population, they also have the highest income inequality of any racial or ethnic group. According to a Pew Research Center analysis of government data, Asians in the top 10% of income distribution earned 10.7 times as much as Asians in the bottom 10%. The “model minority” myth, along with the misconception that AAPIs are a monolith, has resulted in a poor understanding of the needs of Asian American and Pacific Islander communities, and as a result, underfunding of AAPI issues.

The Associated Press reported that donations and contributions to AAPI groups did increase following the shooting in Atlanta. Almost 30 philanthropic donors pledged approximately $25.8 million to AAPI organizations and causes, according to Candid analysis. Despite this increase, philanthropy continues to underfund AAPI organizations. A recent report by Asian Americans/Pacific Islanders in Philanthropy (AAPIP) found that in 2018, only 0.2% of all philanthropic giving in the U.S. was designated for AAPI communities. With the exception of a few blips, foundation funding for AAPIs has remained stagnant over the past three decades. 

The report also found that funding is concentrated among a small group of donors. The top five funders in this space account for almost 40% of all philanthropic giving to AAPI communities. Here are some of the funders leading the way in support of AAPI causes in the U.S.

The Asian American Foundation

Although the Asian American Foundation (TAAF) was founded in 2021, it’s already made a big splash on the philanthropic scene. It is a “convener, incubator and funder” whose goal is to accelerate opportunities and prosperity free from discrimination, violence and slander. The foundation’s focus areas include anti-hate, data and research, and education.

Among its 2021 work, TAAF launched three AAPI Action Centers, providing each with a $500,000 grant; seeded an AAPI Emergency Relief Fund in partnership with GoFundMe; and committed $9.8 million in grants to organizations such as Stop AAPI Hate, Asian Americans Advancing Justice, Act to Change, Asian Health Services and the Asian American Education Project. 

Perhaps most notably, TAAF, in partnership with the Ford Foundation, the MacArthur Foundation and its other partners, called on funders to join the AAPI Giving Challenge to support AAPI communities and causes. To date, the challenge has raised almost $1.1 billion in donations and in-kind contributions from more than 70 funders. 

Ford Foundation

The Ford Foundation has directed a lot of support to marginalized communities over the years. As part of the Giving Challenge, the Ford Foundation has announced a five-year, $150 million commitment to support racial justice, civic engagement, and arts and culture in AAPI communities. As Inside Philanthropy previously reported, a five-year study from AAPIP found that between 2014 and 2018, the Ford Foundation was the top philanthropic funder of AAPI communities, accounting for 22.8% of the total. Over the five-year period, Ford awarded 200 grants totaling more than $209 million. 

According to its grants database, between 2006 and 2022, the Ford Foundation has provided support for organizations such as Asian American Arts Alliance, the Asian American Journalists Association, Asian American Legal Defense and Education Fund, and Asian American-Pacific Islanders in Philanthropy. 

The California Endowment

In its snapshot of funding from 2014 to 2018, AAPIP’s report found that the California Endowment ranked No. 3 among the top AAPI funders, giving a total of $33.2 million spread out over 295 grants. 

Last year, the California Endowment announced a 10-year, $100 million initiative to support AAPI-led organizations in California to ensure grassroots organizations have the necessary resources to “build and expand a power infrastructure that advances health equity, racial justice, and transformative solidarity.” This investment doubled the California Endowment’s previous commitment to AAPI organizations, and is intended to provide both immediate support for AAPI community partners as well as resources to enable long-term change. 

W.K. Kellogg Foundation

AAPIP’s reports that between 2014 and 2018, the W.K. Kellogg Foundation was one of the top funders of AAPI communities, giving a total of $31.4 million. Among its grantees are the Asian American Federation, AAPIP, the Asian and Pacific Islander American Health Forum, the National Coalition for Asian Pacific American Community Development, and the Southeast Asian Resource Action Center. 

AAPI Civic Engagement Fund

The AAPI Civic Engagement Fund works to foster civic participation among Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders. In addition to its narrative, movement-building, and research work, the fund also supports a wide variety of AAPI-serving organizations, including the Filipino Migrant Center, Empowering Pacific Islander Communities, the Korean Resource Center, and Khmer Girls in Action. Since 2014, the fund has contributed more than $15 million in grants to grantee partners. 

In addition, the AAPI Civic Engagement Fund launched its Anti-Racism and Intersectional Justice Fund in 2020 to address the increase in anti-Asian violence and hate crimes. The fund distributed more than $1.6 million in one-time grants to organizations working in this space. A further $2 million was awarded in 2021 to 37 community-based organizations. 

The AAPI Civic Engagement Fund was founded by the Carnegie Corporation of New York, Evelyn and Walter Haas, Jr. Fund,  Ford Foundation and the Wallace H. Coulter Foundation.

Other major funders include the Wallace H. Coulter Foundation, the California Community Foundation, the Boston Foundation, the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, the New Breadth Foundation, and the East Bay Community Foundation.