For immediate release: April 18, 2025
Contact: media@colorofchange.org
COLOR OF CHANGE DECLARES SUPPORT FOR VERA INSTITUTE OF JUSTICE AMID EFFORTS OF DOGE TO ASSIGN A TEAM AT THE ORGANIZATION
NATIONAL – The Vera Institute of Justice recently confirmed that Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) staffers contacted them to assign a team to the organization.
Portia Allen-Kyle, Interim Executive Director of Color Of Change, issued the following statement in response:
“DOGE is led by an unelected leader who operates with unchecked authority, and the latest attempt to extend that control into the nonprofit sector is yet another example. The Trump administration has already sought to disrupt and dominate private universities, law firms, and businesses—now it has turned its focus on nonprofits. This escalating pattern of government overreach is disturbing and it must end.”
DOGE’s effort to ‘embed’ a team at Vera is government interference under the guise of improving efficiency, cutting waste, and preventing fraud. Its lack of awareness that the Department of Justice had already terminated Vera’s funding only underscores the incompetence and lack of any expertise to accomplish its stated mission. The funding that was terminated was for critical work to establish programs aimed at reducing recidivism rates and supporting victims of violent crime. These initiatives help make our communities safer, lower incarceration rates, and prioritize care for those most in need. Vera has long been a national leader in evidence-based programs aimed to reform our justice system and bring healing to our communities. This kind of politically motivated disruption and intimidation has no place in a healthy democracy which depends on strong, independent nonprofits.
Color Of Change stands in solidarity with the Vera Institute of Justice.
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ABOUT COLOR OF CHANGE:
Color Of Change is the nation’s largest online racial justice organization. We help people respond effectively to injustice in the world around us. As a national online force driven by millions of members, we move decision-makers in corporations and governments to create a more human and less hostile world for Black people in America. Visit www.colorofchange.org