Move resources at the speed of harm –and the speed of resistance. 

Resourcing what this moment demands –led by those closest to the harm.

The Moment

Across the country, we are witnessing intensified criminalization of young people, expanded immigration enforcement, escalating attacks on transgender communities, and a broader rise in state violence, surveillance, and punishment. These conditions are interconnected –and unfolding alongside deepening threats to democratic participation and civic life.

At the same time, formerly incarcerated people (FIP), directly impacted communities, and grassroots organizers continue to lead –defending their communities, interrupting harm, and advancing visions rooted in safety, freedom, and collective care. In this moment, FIP leadership is not only essential, it is necessary. Those who have survived and navigated systems of incarceration, criminalization, and deportation bring critical insight, strategy, and credibility to efforts to dismantle those systems and build alternatives.

Circle for Justice Innovations (CJI) is committed to resourcing and following the leadership of formerly incarcerated and directly impacted people –recognizing that meaningful change is driven by those closest to the harm. We believe this moment demands speed, trust, and sustained investment in FIP-led solutions that both respond to immediate threats and lay the groundwork for long-term transformation.

Our Approach & Principles

CJI is grounded in the belief that ending mass incarceration, criminalization, and deportation requires:

• Leadership of formerly incarcerated people (FIP) and directly impacted communities
• Community-led safety strategies that reduce reliance on policing and punishment
• Rapid, flexible resources that meet the pace of on-the-ground conditions
• A commitment to racial, gender, and immigrant justice, recognizing how systems of harm are interconnected
• Nonpartisan civic engagement as a critical tool for protecting communities and shifting power

We prioritize trust-based philanthropy and move resources to those building power in real time.

The SOS Rapid Response Microgrant Fund

The SOS Fund exists to move timely, flexible support to frontline groups responding to urgent threats and seizing critical opportunities to advance decarceration, decriminalization, and community-led safety.

We support rapid response efforts that:

• Address increased criminalization and policing of youth
• Respond to immigration enforcement and ICE presence impacting communities
• Protect and defend transgender and gender-expansive leadership
• Interrupt or respond to state violence, surveillance, or repression
• Advance time-sensitive, nonpartisan civic engagement aligned with 501(c)(3) guidelines in the lead-up to the      2026 midterm elections

Short-term, high-impact efforts, including:

• Rapid response organizing, mobilization, or direct action
• Community safety strategies and alternatives to policing
• Legal support, know-your-rights efforts, and emergency response
• Narrative and communications strategies to counter criminalization
• Base-building and power-building led by directly impacted communities

Toward that goal, Circle for Justice Innovations (CJI) has launched our Strategic Opportunities for Support (SOS) Fund —a rapid-response resource for grassroots organizations confronting the immediate harms of the current political landscape. The SOS Fund is designed to enable bold, strategic, real-time actions to counter ongoing attacks on people most targeted by mass incarceration and state violence.

To be eligible for an SOS Grant, organizations must:

• Be led by formerly incarcerated and/or directly impacted people 
• Propose work that is responsive to current events or threats
• Organizations with budgets under $750,000.00 
• Be a 501(c)(3) organization or be fiscally sponsored by a 501(c)(3) organization with a MOU 

The SOS Fund supports efforts such as: (not limited to)

• Rapid response to new political or legislative threats that escalate criminalization, surveillance, or incarceration;
• Organizing to protect constitutionally protected activity, including protest, assembly, and mutual aid;
• Actions that expose, resist, or halt state-led violence or expansions of carceral systems (e.g. new jails, surveillance programs, or immigration enforcement tactics);
• Work that advances restorative and transformative justice practices as alternatives to punishment and confinement;
• Movement-building events and activities that:                                        
  • Deepen cross-community solidarity, coordination and gathering,
  • Center healing, care, and resilience among frontline organizers and directly impacted people,
  • Invest in leadership development for those most harmed by systems of oppression.
• Narrative building and shifting for this moment,
• Know Your Rights education, training and production

In this moment, we need bold resistance — but also radical care, visionary strategy, and collective endurance. The SOS Fund is a resource to help make that possible.

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Grant Review & Notification Process

Applications are reviewed on a rolling basis weekly.

We will inform you of the decision within 10 days of receiving your application. 

Final Deadline:  Strategic Opportunities Support Fund will remain open as funds allow.