Tzedek DC is proud to announce a significant grant from the recently established Health Equity Fund, administered by the Greater Washington Community Foundation. The four-year grant, totaling $1,000,000, will support Tzedek DC’s policy advocacy work to catalyze change in DC’s fines and fees and medical debt systems. The award marks the second multi-year grant that Tzedek DC has been awarded; in October 2022, the Health Equity Fund committed $400,000 of funding across two years to support our work addressing the structural and social determinants of health by targeting DC’s racial wealth gap.
With this latest support, Tzedek DC’s systemic advocacy reform program will scale up to reform debt-related laws in DC that, in effect, criminalize poverty, impose disproportionate burdens on Black and Latino residents, and, by perpetuating DC’s vast racial wealth gaps, pose formidable roadblocks to health equity.
Ariel Levinson-Waldman, Tzedek DC’s Founding President and Director-Counsel, said, “We are honored to be in a cohort with this extraordinary group of organizations and look forward to using this funding to implement systemic change in the District through our proven coalition-based advocacy approach.”
“The Community Foundation is proud to support Tzedek DC through the Health Equity Fund,” said Tonia Wellons, President & CEO of The Community Foundation. “Their work to advocate for the reform of DC's medical debt and fines and fees systems is instrumental to addressing the social and structural determinants of health in DC.”
About the Health Equity Fund
The $95 million Health Equity Fund is designated to improve the health outcomes and health equity of residents of the District of Columbia. The historic fund is one of the largest philanthropic funds of any kind focused on community-based nonprofits that serve District residents. Created against a backdrop of urgent healthcare needs in the District of Columbia, the Health Equity Fund will be used to address health disparities and social determinants of health for historically underserved District residents.
The Greater Washington Community Foundation was independently selected to manage the Health Equity Fund because of its track record of working with individual donors, businesses, and local government to manage effective community investments and create tangible, lasting change in the region. Health Equity Fund goals align with The Community Foundation’s ongoing work and 10-year strategic vision to close the racial wealth gap by eliminating the historic, racialized disparities in the Greater Washington region.
About Tzedek DC
Tzedek DC’s name is drawn from the ancient Jewish teaching “Tzedek, tzedek tirdof, or “Justice, justice you shall pursue.” Headquartered at the University of the District of Columbia David A. Clarke School of Law, Tzedek DC’s mission is to safeguard the legal rights and financial health of DC residents with lower incomes facing the often-devastating consequences of debt collection and credit-related obstacles. This mission is carried out as anti-racism work in response to the massive wealth gaps tracking race in DC and nationwide. Tzedek DC seeks to serve and empower its client base, which is comprised of 90% Black residents, 60% women, and 25% disabled community members. Our strategic approach combines three synergistic activities: (i) free direct services—legal representation and advice, and financial counseling; (ii) working in coalition to make systemic change; and (iii) providing bilingual community legal education on debt collection, identity theft, and credit management. Since 2017, Tzedek DC has served over 3,000 client households in legal matters and catalyzed systemic reforms benefiting hundreds of thousands of DC residents.