YWCA South Florida’s Statement on Fearless Fund Injunction

YWCA South Florida is disappointed in the recent decision by the 11th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals to block the Fearless Fund from continuing its Fearless Strivers Grant Fund process, as the anti-affirmative action case against the fund moves forward.

This is yet another example in a startling trend among anti-affirmative action activists using laws meant to uplift and level the playing field for businesses and entrepreneurs of color to push an opposing agenda. Specifically, this lawsuit aims to turn the Reconstruction-era law section 1981 of the 1866 Civil Rights Act against its initial goal of protecting formerly enslaved people from economic exclusion.

Economic opportunities for communities of color, and particularly women of color, continue to lag behind other groups, and the economic gap along racial and gender lines is continuing to widen. Programs like the Fearless Fund and others are crucial and necessary to unravel the historic and structural patterns of economic disenfranchisement of Black communities. We still have a long way to go in equal opportunity, and we cannot lose momentum now.

While the outcome of the case is still to come, it has the potential for far-reaching consequences for organizations in South Florida. YWCA South Florida is committed and unwavering in our work to creating a more equitable society through pathways and opportunities for historically marginalized communities. We are not discouraged, and will continue the work we have been doing for more than 104 years.