Have you ever been so mad that you just needed to throw money at something? Well thousands of Americans sure have. In the aftermath of the election cycle, a new form of revenue appeared for non-profits everywhere: rage-donating! The concept is when a person in power says something you disagree with, go to the website of a non-profit that is in direct contention with the statement you got mad about, and donate. One website, RageDonate.com, already exists to harness the power of people fed up with the things Donald Trump says and does, and according to them the phenomenon is simple: "It feels good, and it does good. Get mad and help others get even."
Last week, before the Inauguration, I told people that one way to help was to donate your time to local charities, but if anyone wants to donate a little more than time and elbow grease, I know a few organizations who won't turn you down. These NGOs have HUGE targets on their backs now that Obama has left the Oval Office, and they definitely need your money more than the places most of us usually go for retail therapy.
PP already drew tons of support for rage-donors getting back at VP Mike Pence for his treatment of their clinics. In fact, many took it a step further and donated in "honor" of Pence so that he'd get a little card in the mail from Planned Parenthood telling him just how generous these donors were being in his stead. But, just because PP has gotten a lot of donations already, doesn't mean that they don't need a lot more. Soon, they will likely be losing a lot of federal funding if not all of it, and they have clinics and offices in every state and the District of Columbia to maintain.
So far, despite Trump's repeated claims of being an ally to "the gays," every single nominee for his cabinet has had repeated mentions of homophobia on the public policy record, and his shortlist for Supreme Court Justices is also full of suspiciously bigoted characters. So, why not make out a check to the largest LGBTQIA rights organization in the nation, the Human Rights Campaign. Need proof of the work they're doing and why it's important now more than ever? Take a look at the pages and pages of reporting and resources they have about Trump. The receipts are everywhere.
Amnesty has a huge benefit over single issue campaigns, because its work is largely intersectional, and they operate not only in the US but in other areas of the world that will be impacted by Trump's administration. For example, think that whole Russian hacker business is shady? Your donation could help give protection to Kremlin whistleblowers. What about civilians and refugees in and coming from Syria? Amnesty has you covered. They work in every continent, and focus on all types of human rights causes. They also operate in the US and actively support activists and protesters across America.
I first encountered this group when I was in Phoenix, AZ at a progressive advocacy conference back in 2015, protesting inhumane detention centers for undocumented immigrants. From that prelude, you can probably guess who they are and what they do, but if not, Not1More, or Ni Uno Mas, is short for the phrase "Not One More Deportation" and they are a border advocacy group. They champion the motto "No human is illegal," and they along with groups such as Puente AZ and No Mas Muerte work to end discrimination against undocumented people.
5. Council on American-Islamic Relations
Called "terrorists" and the "Muslim Brotherhood" by conservatives, CAIR is actually a group that is "committed to protecting the civil rights of all Americans, regardless of faith," I don't know about you, but that's the kind of thing I want my money to be put towards. On top of civil rights advocacy, CAIR also runs counter-terrorist campaigns, offers legal advice to people who have been victims of hate crimes, and seeks to support a more diverse government and voting population. However, they are widely stigmatized and need all the allies they can get!
Whether you're interested in being a monthly donor or can only afford a one-time donation, these and many many more non-profits are in dire need of monetary support. So, instead of that "Don't blame me, I voted for Hillary" T-shirt you saw in the Philadelphia International Airport, put your money where your mouth is, and give it to someone who needs it, not a corporation.
