Advocacy, Politics, & Philanthropy: A Reflection on a Decade of Immigration Reform Advocacy
A ten-year, $70 million effort by Atlantic Philanthropies helped unify immigration reform advocates behind an agenda focused on comprehensive reform for all immigrants, a report from Innovation Network and Atlantic finds. The report, Advocacy, Politics, & Philanthropy: A Reflection on a Decade of Immigration Reform Advocacy (60 pages, PDF), examined the impact of Atlantic's creation of a formal campaign and a mix of ongoing, long-, and short-term grantmaking, including support for 501(c)(4) organizations engaged in political and electoral activities, between 2004 and 2014. The evaluation found that the effort provided significant and early support that attracted additional funding and developed leadership and anchor organizations that strengthened the campaign's planning, communications, and organizing capabilities. At the same time, the report found fewer benefits from a strategic decision to insist on comprehensive reform instead of incremental reform, which some advocates came to believe resulted in missed opportunities to benefit some immigrants.
