The Boston Foundation distributes $376,000 in grants from Meeting the Moment: Supporting Our Immigrant Neighbors to organizations helping immigrants impacted by TPS revocations

August 20, 2026

The Boston Foundation today announced the distribution of $376,000 in new grants to nine organizations from its Meeting the Moment: Supporting Our Immigrant Neighbors initiative, targeting organizations supporting immigrants being uprooted by recent decisions on Temporary Protected Status, or TPS. Tens of thousands of immigrants in Massachusetts, primarily Haitians, are at greatest risk from federal rulings allowing the Trump Administration to unilaterally cancel TPS designations, resulting in thousands of jobs lost and families displaced to countries many of them have not seen in well over a decade.

“Beyond the very real economic impact summarily evicting thousands of workers will have on Massachusetts, the human toll on thousands of our neighbors is unconscionable,” said Orlando Watkins, Vice President and Chief Program Officer at the Boston Foundation. “These organizations are providing critical supports, helping TPS holders navigate the legal process, meet their basic needs, protect their families and defend their legal and human rights as they explore any options they might have to avoid returning to often unsafe homelands many of them have not seen in over a decade.”

Meeting the Moment: Supporting Our Immigrant Neighbors is a focused, three-prong strategy to provide resources for immigrant communities across Greater Boston. TBF is expanding legal aid and community-based supports to protect families facing immediate threats, providing flexible resources so immigrant-serving nonprofits can meet rising demand and plan for the long term, and investing in research, local journalism, and storytelling to counter misinformation and guide effective policy.

Launched this spring in partnership with the City of Boston and other organizations, the initiative is funded by the Boston Foundation and its community of donors.

Among the grants in this round are support for eight nonprofit organizations working directly to support immigrants and their families. In addition, the Foundation is making a $50,000 grant to the United Way of Massachusetts Bay’s United Response Fund, which provides support statewide for organizations on the front lines to deploy emergency financial assistance to individuals and families to ensure they can access basic needs such as food, housing, healthcare and childcare.

Grantees include:

Massachusetts Immigrant and Refugee Advocacy Coalition (MIRA): $46,000
The Massachusetts Immigrant and Refugee Advocacy Coalition (MIRA) is a statewide coalition advancing the rights and integration of immigrants and refugees through advocacy, education, organizing, and direct community resources. In response to the recent TPS decision, MIRA has provided dedicated information and education for Haitian TPS holders, including Haitian Creole resources, webinars on legal options and asylum, and guidance for advocates supporting impacted community members.

International Institute of New England: $40,000
The International Institute of New England provides comprehensive services to refugees and immigrants, including immigration legal assistance, case management, employment support, housing and food connections, and other services supporting long term stability. IINE has served thousands of Haitian immigrants in recent years and, following the Supreme Court’s TPS decision, launched a dedicated TPS Support Initiative offering legal consultations, family preparedness planning, intensive case management, employment assistance, and connections to essential resources such as food and housing.

Greater Boston Legal Services: $40,000
Greater Boston Legal Services provides free civil legal assistance to low-income residents throughout Greater Boston, including extensive immigration representation and advocacy. Its Immigration Unit represents immigrants before USCIS, ICE, immigration courts, and federal courts while also providing communities and service providers with information about immigration rights and available remedies; GBLS also offers services addressing housing, public benefits, health coverage, employment, and other basic-needs issues.

Caribbean Youth Club: $40,000
Caribbean Youth Club (CYC) provides culturally specific support to newly arrived Afro-Caribbean immigrant and refugee youth enrolled in Boston Public Schools, helping young people and their families navigate the transition to life in the United States. Its year-round programming includes academic support, mentoring, life-skills development, employment opportunities, culturally connected peer networks, and assistance navigating education and social-service systems.

WelcomeNST: $40,000
WelcomeNST mobilizes community-based Neighborhood Support Teams to help refugee and immigrant families establish stability and self-sufficiency in their new communities. In Greater Boston, its model connects immigrant households with teams that can provide practical assistance such as food access, accompaniment to appointments, financial-literacy and Know Your Rights education, housing support, and help overcoming barriers to self-reliance.

Justice at Work: $40,000
Justice at Work is a multilingual legal nonprofit that partners with worker centers and grassroots organizations to protect workers in low-paying jobs, with deep roots in supporting immigrant worker communities. The organization provides direct legal services, workplace-rights education, technical assistance, and representation for workers facing wage theft, discrimination, retaliation, workplace injury, sexual harassment, and other violations.

Boston Immigration Justice Accompaniment Network (BIJAN): $40,000
The Boston Immigration Justice Accompaniment Network (BIJAN) is a community-based network providing direct accompaniment and practical assistance to people impacted by the immigration enforcement system. Its support can include accompaniment to court and ICE check-ins, legal referrals, assistance with bond and legal costs, transportation, paperwork support, and short-term housing and other immediate needs for people released from detention.

Brockton Workers Alliance: $40,000
Brockton Workers Alliance (BWA) is a worker-led organization that educates, organizes, and advocates alongside immigrant workers experiencing workplace abuse, exploitation, and other systemic barriers. BWA provides workers’ rights clinics, Know Your Rights education, ESOL classes, voter education, immigration defense and deferred-action assistance, and advocacy around health-care access and economic justice; its organizing has included Brockton’s Latinx, Haitian, and Cape Verdean communities.

United Way of Massachusetts Bay/United Response Fund: $50,000