The Marguerite Casey Foundation (MCF) has announced a $6 million investment in four organizations working toward bridging the worlds of social justice scholarship and social movements.

Grantees include the Portal Project of the Social Justice Initiative at University of Illinois Chicago, UCLA Luskin Institute on Inequality and Democracy, Haymarket Books, and Highlander Research and Education Center. The one-time grants of $1.5 million each are aimed at shifting the balance of power in society to those who have long been historically excluded from it.

“We believe that bold investments in ideas about how to shift power in society must be matched with bold investments in organizing efforts that help bring them to life,” said MCF president and CEO Carmen Rojas. “Organizing efforts should be multiracial and durable in nature to ensure that their impact reflects the character of the communities they aim to serve, and leaves those communities changed, more informed, more free, and better able to shape our democracy and economy.”

(Photo credit: Getty Images/Vesnaandjic)