fund gives $185,000 to support young activists & activists' kids

For Immediate Release, 12/28/00
Contact: Amber Black
Rosenberg Fund for Children
413-739-9020, amber [at] rfc.org

Rosenberg Fund Awards $185,000 to Celebrate its 10th Anniversary

The Rosenberg Fund for Children (RFC) kicked-off its tenth anniversary year by dramatically increasing its granting and broadening the scope of who it will benefit. Unlike previous years, the $185,000 the RFC awarded went not only to children in this country whose parents are targeted activists, but also to young people themselves targeted because of their progressive actions. The RFC is a national program, and its current beneficiaries come from places as far-flung as Minneapolis, San Antonio, and New York City. Among this year’s beneficiaries were young people mistreated for demonstrating outside the summer’s Republican National Convention; and more than 180 other children and youth suffering because of their own or their parents’ progressive activity.

Commenting on the expansion of the RFC’s mission, Robert Meeropol, the Fund’s founder and Executive Director said, “The surge of activism that is sweeping the nation is being met with a wave of authoritarian cruelty. Too much attention has been focused on a few protestors smashing windows, or on those engaged in blocking traffic. In reality, most of our youth activist beneficiaries were not even engaging in civil disobedience when they were targeted. They were viciously attacked and wrongly detained for exercising their constitutional rights to publicly voice their opinions.”

Robert Meeropol, the younger son of Julius and Ethel Rosenberg (who were executed when Robert was six years old), started the RFC in 1990. He began only with a vision of helping other children who were experiencing traumatic circumstances similar to those which he and his brother endured. The Fund had no wealthy angels, just the dream that by collecting a large number of modest contributions from thousands of individuals across the country, a substantial fund could be built to help the children of those working to improve America for everyone. The RFC’s Board of Directors set and achieved several goals for its first decade: to help over 100 children per year and award $100,000 annually, and simultaneously build a million dollar endowment to enable the RFC to be a dependable source of multi-year support for its beneficiaries.

Meeropol expressed his gratitude to the many thousands of individuals who have supported the RFC in its first decade: “Our donors came through in a big way. We thought we could achieve our goals, but I never expected we’d almost double them. We’ve awarded almost three quarters of a million dollars in our first decade and our endowment stands at $1.25 million. This amount is not large by foundation standards, but for a grassroots organization to build a million dollar endowment, essentially $25 at a time, is a huge achievement. Our staff, Board and volunteers across the country worked very hard to produce this result.”

The RFC looks forward with confidence and excitement to its second decade. Its core program of providing grants for the educational and emotional needs of the children of targeted progressive activists in this country is fully operational and ongoing. For the next decade the RFC has two major new initiatives to add. It plans to expand its granting to targeted activist youth. It also has begun a program to further support beneficiaries by bringing groups of them together for summer gatherings to meet and share their experiences with one another. The RFC expects to have a significant positive impact upon targeted activist families and youth in this country for many years to come.

For further information contact Amber Black, Rosenberg Fund for Children
413-739-9020, amber [at] rfc.org
1145 Main St., Suite 408, Springfield, MA, 01103