We stand with our DREAMers

Friends of HDF,

We have all heard the devastating news that the Trump administration has eliminated DACA - the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program. This news ushers in heartache for the families and students we serve - young women and men who have grown up in our communities and are now pursuing higher education and working to support their families, fulfilling the American dream step-by-step through their efforts each day.

Now, their dreams of improving their lives and their communities are uncertain. In the face of fear, we stand with these students and their families.

Our country was founded by immigrants, built by immigrants, and continues to thrive through immigrants' contributions in every field - the arts, medicine, social services, engineering and construction, and more. We are all connected to this legacy of immigration, in one way or another. To punish children for the decisions of their parents is unjust, and it is un-American.

The Hispanic Development Fund will fight for the future of the families we serve. To that end:

  • We will continue to support all Hispanic students regardless of immigration status through our Hispanic Development Fund Scholarship Program. Watch this video to see what the HDF Scholarship Program means to DACA students..
  • We will thoughtfully consider how we can use our grantmaking to improve the lives of Kansas City's immigrants and refugees.
  • We will elevate the voice of the immigrant and refugee communities in our work across Kansas City and the nation, building consensus as we work to find solutions to the issues at hand.

You can stand with the Hispanic community during this uncertain time. Contact your lawmakers to request a DACA replacement. Our students are counting on us.

Regardless of the winds of the time, we remain committed to our mission: to improve the quality of life of Latino families in Greater Kansas City. Please join us as we help our students accomplish their goals and build a better life for their families and communities.

Con Fe,

Ramón Murguía
Chairman of the Board
Greater Kansas City Hispanic Development Fund

 

LETTER FROM THE HDF BOARD

November 17, 2016

Familia,

Today, more than ever, our work to build stronger Latino communities is needed. Over the past three decades, the Greater Kansas City Hispanic Development Fund (HDF) has provided grants, scholarships, and leadership in the community that have reflected the priorities established with direct input from our community.

HDF remains committed to being responsive to the needs that will surface from our community over the course of the next several years. The outcome of this election does not change our mission or the resiliency of our people. It only confirms how critically important our collective work is and the urgency by which we must act.

We will continue to support and strengthen our local nonprofits who work directly with our families. We are committed to provide resources that will address the critical priorities of our community.  HDF will delay announcement of our grantmaking process in 2017 until we have had an opportunity to evaluate where our grants will best be deployed to support emerging issues in the face of a new administration in Washington, D.C.

Not only will we marshal our resources to address critical needs, we will also seek to find partners to support the work of our nonprofits, together ensuring that our Latino community continues to prosper.

To that end, HDF convened a group of more than 80 nonprofit leaders and community members on Monday evening, November 21, 2016, to discuss how the new administration’s policies could impact immigrant and refugee families. This group, the Kansas City Immigrant Rights Coalition, is committed to standing with our immigrant communities to offer support and strength.

We will continue to convey gatherings of the Collation and concerned community members as is necessary to support our community and collectively face the challenges put before us. You will hear from us over the course of the next several months about upcoming community forums for parents, families, nonprofits, and philanthropy on how we can best support our community.

We will stand together, we will support one another, and together, we will persevere.

Con Fe,

Greater Kansas City Hispanic Development Fund

 

News

HISPANIC DEVELOPMENT FUND IMMIGRATION REPORT
REVEALS NEWLY COMPILED STATISTICS
Announces Change In Leadership

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – The Greater Kansas City Hispanic Development Fund hosted an event last week with Kansas City-area funders and nonprofit organizations serving local immigrant populations.  Representatives from more than 25 foundations and nonprofit organizations convened to better understand how to address the needs of immigrants and refugees in the region.

During the event on October 20, Randy Capps, Senior Policy Analyst at the Migration Policy Institute in Washington, D.C., presented newly compiled statistics about the Kansas City metro’s 135,000 immigrants. The full report, presentation and summary infographic are available at www.hdfkc.org/grantmaking.

“Seventy percent of the Kansas City metro’s immigrants are lawfully present in the United States, and more than half have been in the country since 2000, and own their own homes. The report’s findings reveal that immigrants are contributing to the region’s economy as long-term residents, employees, homeowners and parents of U.S.-citizen children,” Capps said.

The event was part of the Hispanic Development Fund’s latest initiative to support Kansas City’s immigrant population in applying for citizenship and administrative relief through grants to local nonprofit organizations.