$175,000 AWARDED TO LOCAL INNOVATORS
On September 20, 2022 the Justice Vault hosted our anti-racism innovation pitch event. Five exceptional organizations presented their ideas to build anti-racist systems in Columbus, OH. Our judges allocated $160,000 in awards and event attendees voted to determine the Community Choice Award winner.
* $100,000 Judges' Award - Black Tech Columbus
* $40,000 Judges' Award - Maroon Arts Group/Deliver Black Dreams
* $20,000 Judges' Award - Yates Entertainment
* $15,000 Community Choice Award - Black Tech Columbus
All three award winners plus Peoples Justice Project and Driven While Black will be invited to participate in the Justice Vault Impact Program, providing ongoing tools and support to maximize impact for our community.
VIDEO:IT TAKES A COLLECTIVE
YES. IT DID START WITH SLAVERY.
Justice Vault started with a conversation our founders had in early 2020 about insufficient community funding for anti-racist innovation in Columbus. They discussed how the roots of today’s racism trace back 400 years to the start of slavery in America. By supporting slavery, our nation declared that black people were less than human. This laid the foundation for centuries of oppression, racist policy, and racist culture.
Redlining led to inequitable home ownership, inequitable wealth, and inequitable tax bases that fund education. Inhuman, medical testing without consent (like the Tuskegee Syphilis Experiment) has led to mistrust and underutilization of healthcare. Root causes like these persist in our world today, largely as a result of racist systems designed to keep the wealthy and powerful in their privileged positions.
To drive change, our community must replace racist systems with new, equitable systems that support justice FOR ALL. Justice Vault funds innovators who fight racism. We aim to be a cornerstone of a new, equitable foundation for our community. We need you to help build the foundation.
