Justice Oregon for Black Lives is a grant initiative from Meyer Memorial Trust, created in 2020 as a five-year, $25 million commitment to combat systemic and structural racism in Oregon. In 2025, Meyer's board approved continuation of the initiative as an enduring commitment to Oregon's Black communities. Grant awards range from $50,000 to $200,000 and are open to nonprofits serving Black communities in Oregon.

Funding priorities include education, economic justice, arts and culture, public safety, and trauma and healing. The initiative emphasizes collective learning, collaboration, and relationship-building over competitive grantmaking.

Justice Oregon for Black Lives | Meyer Memorial Trust Justice Oregon for Black Lives Justice Oregon for Black Lives​ was created in 2020 as a five-year,​ $25 million initiative, a response to nearly two months of demonstrations protesting the killings of George Floyd, Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor and others that awakened a national movement to end systemic and structural racism.

In its formative years, community leaders helped to shape the initiative’s topical priorities, with grantmaking focused on supporting education, economic justice, arts and culture, public safety​, ​and addressing trauma and healing​.

We​’ve learned that building the capacity to serve the Black community well takes time​, ​but that time and support paid off with stronger leadership, infrastructure and programs and helped create the conditions for more transformative and lasting change. Shifting from a competitive model of grantmaking to one that centers collective learning, collaboration and relationship-building​ has laid the groundwork for innovative ideas.

We ​​are plant​ing seeds of connection and belonging among organizations and their leaders — efforts that build up energy and momentum rather than causing more exhaustion and competition. In 2025, Meyer’s board of trustees approved ​the continuation of ​this initiative, making an enduring commitment to Oregon’s Black communities as we work together toward the just future that all Oregonians deserve.

Created in partnership with Justice Oregon grantee Lion Speaks, this video highlights the work of our grantee partners and explores the intentions behind the ongoing initiative. Justice Oregon is about bringing Black people together to imagine what could be possible. We don’t get a lot of those opportunities in our day-to-day lives.

That’s why it’s so important for us to have the space to keep dreaming. Justice Oregon has grown and evolved since its launch in 2020. ​We’ve learned that making change in the community-identified priority areas isn’t just about issues; the work is holistic and interconnected.

Three core approaches now guide how we support and show up for Black communities across Oregon. We’ve seen that lasting change requires partnership. By fostering collaboration among Black-serving organizations, Justice Oregon creates space for innovation, data sharing and collective problem-solving.

These collaborations reduce competition for scarce resources and build stronger networks that can influence systems and attract additional investment. From the start, Justice Oregon has been co-created with Black Oregonians. Our community advisory board and partners have helped shape priorities, elevate overlooked issues like trauma and healing, and simplify processes so grantees can focus on their work.

This participatory approach shifts power, honors community expertise and ensures funding remains grounded in lived experience. We know that many Black-centered organizations operate in an under-resourced ecosystem. Beyond general operating support, there is a clear need for investments in leadership development, fundraising infrastructure, data systems and other tools that build organizational strength.

By resourcing capacity, we help ensure that today’s emergent organizations can become tomorrow’s anchors for thriving Black communities. Reading, data and resources that inform and inspire this work There’s something really beautiful about being able to examine the world around you, and to say that it’s not right. We could do better.

We can imagine something better. What we’re trying to do is move folks from a place of despair into radical imagination. We invite organizations to dream with us toward a healed future for Black Oregonians.

Justice Oregon for Black Lives isn’t just a funding initiative — it’s a commitment to centering Black voices, investing in community-led solutions and reshaping the way Meyer supports lasting change. In all these projects, one thing is clear: collaboration is key to building thriving ecosystems by and for Black Oregonians.