CivicUnity is a national coalition dedicated to advancing social justice, cultural vibrancy, and community resilience. Through grassroots advocacy, coalition building, and policy innovation, we amplify marginalized voices and catalyze systemic change—because no one is free until everyone is free.
Founded in 2012, CivicUnity has evolved from a regional alliance of mutual aid groups into a national force for social transformation. We center community-led solutions—believing that those most impacted by systemic inequity hold the deepest wisdom to guide change. Our model emphasizes participatory democracy, cultural humility, and intersectional solidarity.
We operate on a simple truth: sustainable progress cannot be imported. It must grow organically from within neighborhoods, schools, workplaces, and civic institutions. That’s why we invest in long-term infrastructure—training local leaders, co-creating policy platforms, and building coalitions across racial, generational, and ideological lines.
Rapid-response legal and mutual aid support for frontline protesters, immigrant families facing ICE raids, and tenants resisting displacement. In the past year, we’ve deployed over 2,500 volunteer defenders and secured $4.2M in emergency grants for impacted households.
Learn more about defense efforts →Preserving and revitalizing Indigenous, Black, and immigrant cultural practices as acts of resilience. This initiative supports local artists-in-residence, oral history archives, and youth-led heritage festivals—because culture is a weapon of justice.
Discover our cultural work →A 10-state network advocating for community land trusts, rent control, and the decommodification of housing. We’ve helped establish 37 tenant unions and facilitated 12 successful acquisition projects to transition 430+ units into permanently affordable housing.
Read our housing report →Social change is cumulative. Whether you volunteer 10 hours or $50, your contribution multiplies through coalition power. Use our impact calculator to see how your action scales into systemic change.
With your support, CivicUnity can:
Launch a new mutual aid network in 2 additional communities
Providing emergency relief to 1,800 households and training 75 local leaders.
When the city proposed dumping 200,000 tons of dredged sediment near their neighborhood school, three 16-year-olds from our Climate Futures Lab organized a week-long occupation of City Hall—complete with policy briefings, art installations, and testimony from elders.
Climate Justice Read how they won a ban on ocean dumping →In rural Mississippi, 82-year-old Ruby Lee Johnson joined our oral history program to record songs passed down through generations of formerly enslaved families. Now, her recordings are part of the state’s official archives—and her great-grandchildren are learning to sing them.
Heritage Preservation Hear Ruby’s song “Freedom River” →After 320 families withheld rent for 90 days—coordinated through our Tenant Power Academy—the city’s largest landlord agreed to a landmark agreement: no rent hikes for 3 years, $15M for building repairs, and shared decision-making on future developments.
Tenant Power Download the strike playbook →We use a participatory governance model: 70% of board seats are reserved for frontline community leaders, and all major initiatives undergo a 30-day community feedback period. We believe in nothing about us without us.
Yes—but selectively. We partner with governments only when it advances community-defined goals, and we retain full independence to critique or oppose policy that undermines justice. Our role is to amplify community power, not to negotiate it away.
68% goes directly to programs, 18% to community organizing infrastructure (like training and tech tools), and 14% to overhead. We publish quarterly financial disclosures and welcome site visits to any project—because transparency builds trust.
Absolutely. Our Digital Solidarity Hub connects volunteers with local campaigns through translation, data analysis, social media coordination, and virtual advocacy training. Check our action page for current remote opportunities.
In moments of crisis, we turn to one another—not to saviors, but to shared power. Our networks have delivered over $22M in direct aid, passed 43 local ordinances, and changed national narratives about what’s possible.
“You can’t wait for liberation to live with dignity. Liberation is built in the living.”