A father and child hold a protest sign to demand the closure of detention camps at the U.S.-Mexico border at a July 12, 2019 protest in Philadelphia. Photo: Jana Shea / Shutterstock.com

By Judith Elson
Greater Philadelphia Branch

February 2020

With the help of a WILPF US mini-grant, six members of Greater Philadelphia WILPF will be going to Brownsville, Texas, on February 6 to serve meals to over 1,000 asylum seekers at the bridge crossing into Matamoros, Mexico. Check out the website of the wonderful non-profit dedicated to humanitarian assistance to asylum seekers, Team Brownsville: www.teambrownsville.org.

We will be volunteering with this group, hopefully raising over $1,000 in donations beforehand to pay for one “Dinner at the Bridge” for families waiting to legally cross the border and seek asylum, and for those who have been returned to Mexico to wait for their date in immigration court. We will also be helping out at the “Sidewalk” school, held every Sunday on the Bridge for the children, providing books, drawing materials, and activities in English and Spanish.

We really appreciate this opportunity afforded us by the mini-grant committee and will tell all about it when we return.

Reminder: Next Mini-Grant Deadline is February 15

The WILPF US Mini-Grant Program nurtures the work being done by Issue Committees and Branches. There are three granting cycles, with deadlines on February 15, June 1, and October 1.

A full explanation of the program, guidelines, and the application can be found in the Apply for Grants section under Resources on the WILPF US website.