Fundraiser to reunite separated immigrant families goes massively viral.

    
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There are several ways to get involved.

Fundraiser to reunite separated immigrant families goes massively viral.

Photo by John Moore/Getty Images.

Three Facebook employees were heartbroken by the news of immigrant children being separated from their parents after being detained at the U.S.-Mexico border. So they decided to do something.

On June 16, they launched a fundraising campaign called "Reunite an immigrant parent with their child." It promised to deliver funds to The Refugee and Immigrant Center for Education and Legal Services (RAICES), a nonprofit that provides legal services to families who have been detained while attempting to cross the border.

Specifically, RAICES has two stated goals tied to this campaign:

Directly funding bonds to get parents out of detention and reunited with their children while awaiting court proceedings.
Ensuring legal representation for every child in a Texas immigration court.

In just four days, it has reached out an astounding $10 million in contributions from more than 260,000 individual donors.

In a statement posted to their Facebook page, RAICES said:

"We do not have the words to thank Charlotte and Dave Willner. Thanks is inadequate for the work these funds will make possible. We know it will change lives. We know it will save lives by keeping people from being deported to unsafe countries."

When the campaign started, it had a modest goal of a few thousand dollars. But the goal kept getting shattered as news of the campaign went viral. Three days later, the campaign hit a fundraising goal of $5 million coming from more than 127,000 individual donors.

Since then, the contributions have been snowballing at an epic level with no sign of slowing down.

For skeptics out there, the organizers have stated that Facebook is not taking fees from the campaign and the organizers have promised to deliver the raised funds to RAICES within 14 days of the campaign's completion.

"Until the election, I think there's little chance of a political solution to this grave American moral failing. But there is still something we can do," campaign co-founder Charlotte Wilner wrote on the fundraising Facebook page.

While $10 million is a hugely impressive number that will have real results, the sea of individual donors might be a more powerful message for elected officials.

It sends a strong message to public leaders that Americans demand humane policies — and they won't stand for it.

While most Americans are opposed to the White House policy of family separation, there is still strong support from Republican voters and officials. However, there are already cracks in what only days ago seemed like a united front, with Republicans breaking rank with Trump's handling of the issue.

Vocal statements like this campaign are essential to sending a clear message that even voters who favor strong enforcement of immigration laws will not tolerate the mistreatment of children and families.

Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images

Watching this story unfold across the news can make a lot of people feel helpless. But there are ways to help.

The White House has a significant amount of leeway in enforcing immigration policy and Trump appears to be digging his heels in. Short of waiting until this November's midterm elections, people are looking to do something now. This campaign is a good start, but here's what else you can do:

CARA is another group providing pro bono representation to detained families and individuals.
If you want to support RAICES but cannot do financially, you can volunteer.
The ACLU is pursuing litigation to reunite a family in California that could help set legal precedent to stop the policy of separation.
A number of Families Belong Together rallies are scheduled across America over the coming days and weeks.
And, as always, you can call your elected representatives to make sure your voice is heard. The ACLU has a helpful form that will directly connect you to your U.S. Senator's office, with a prepared script to voice your opposition to family separation policies.

Update 6/20/2018: The great increase in amount of contributions the first few days of the campaign from $5 million to $10 million was added to this post as well as that it has become Facebook's most successful fundraising campaign ever.

Capital One

Capital One Impact Initiative

Veterans across the country are struggling to find stable housing. This affordable housing community is ensuring Los Angeles vets have a place to call home.

Courtesy of Creative Commons

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After years of service as a military nurse in the naval Marine Corps, Los Angeles, California-resident Rhonda Jackson became one of the 37,000 retired veterans in the U.S. who are currently experiencing homelessness — roughly eight percent of the entire homeless population.

"I was living in a one-bedroom apartment with no heat for two years," Jackson said. "The Department of Veterans Affairs was doing everything they could to help but I was not in a good situation."

One day in 2019, Jackson felt a sudden sense of hope for a better living arrangement when she caught wind of the ongoing construction of Veteran's Village in Carson, California — a 51-unit affordable housing development with one, two and three-bedroom apartments and supportive services to residents through a partnership with U.S.VETS.

Her feelings of hope quickly blossomed into a vision for her future when she learned that Veteran's Village was taking applications for residents to move in later that year after construction was complete.

"I was entered into a lottery and I just said to myself, 'Okay, this is going to work out,'" Jackson said. "The next thing I knew, I had won the lottery — in more ways than one."

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Tory Burch

Tory Burch Empowered Women

This International Women’s Day, Tory Burch and Upworthy Are Celebrating Empowered Women Making a Difference

Tory Burch

Courtesy of Tory Burch

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This March marks one year since the start of the pandemic… and it's been an incredibly difficult year: Over 500,000 people have died and hundreds of thousands have lost their jobs. But the pandemic's economic downturn has been disproportionately affecting women because they are more likely to work in hard-hit industries, such as hospitality or entertainment, and many of them have been forced to leave their jobs due to the lack of childcare.

But throughout all that hardship, women have, over and over again, found ways to help one another and solve problems.

"Around the world, women have stepped up and found ways to help where it is needed most," says Tory Burch, an entrepreneur who started her own business in 2004.

Burch knows a thing or two about empowering women: After seeing the many obstacles that women in business face — even before the pandemic — she created the Tory Burch Foundation in 2009 to empower women entrepreneurs.

And now, for International Women's Day, her company is launching a global campaign with Upworthy to celebrate the women around the world who give back and create real change in their communities.

"I hope the creativity and resilience of these women, and the amazing ways they have found to have real impact, will inspire and energize others as much as they have me," Burch says.

This year's Empowered Women certainly are inspiring:

Shalini SamtaniCourtesy of Shalini Samtani

Take, for example, Shalini Samtani. When her daughter was diagnosed with a rare immune disorder, she spent a lot of time in the hospital, which caused her to quickly realize that there wasn't a single company in the toy industry servicing the physical or emotional needs of the 3 million hospitalized children across America every year. She was determined to change that — so she created The Spread the Joy Foundation to deliver free play kits to pediatric patients all around the country.

Varsha YajmanCourtesy of Varsha Yajman

Varsha Yajman is another one of this year's nominees. She is just 18 years old, and yet she has been diligently fighting to build awareness and action for climate justice for the last seven years by leading school strikes, working as a paralegal with Equity Generations Lawyers, and speaking to CEOs from Siemen's and several big Australian banks at AGMs.

Caitlin MurphyCourtesy of Caitlin Murphy

Caitlin Murphy, meanwhile, stepped up in a big way during the pandemic by pivoting her business — Global Gateway Logistics — to secure and transport over 2 million masks to hospitals and senior care facilities across the country. She also created the Gateway for Good program, which purchased and donated 10,000 KN95 masks for local small businesses, charities, cancer patients and their families, immunocompromised, and churches in the area.

Simone GordonCourtesy of Simone Gordon

Simone Gordon, a domestic violence survivor and single mom, wanted to pay it forward after she received help getting essentials and tuition assistance — so she created the Instagram account @TheBlackFairyGodMotherOfficial and nonprofit to provide direct assistance to families in need. During the pandemic alone, they have raised over $50,000 for families and they have provided emergency assistance — in the form of groceries — for numerous women and families of color.

Victoria SanusiCourtesy of Victoria Sanusi

Victoria Sanusi started Black Gals Livin' with her friend Jas and the podcast has been an incredibly powerful way of destigmatizing mental health for numerous listeners. The podcast quickly surpassed a million listens, was featured on Michaela Coel's "I May Destroy You," won podcast of the year at the Brown Sugar Awards, and was named one of Elle Magazine's best podcasts of 2020.

And Upworthy and the Tory Burch are just getting started. They are still searching the globe for more extraordinary women who are making an impact in their communities.

Do you know one? If you do, nominate her now. If she's selected, she could receive $5,000 to give to a nonprofit of her choice through the Tory Burch Foundation. Submissions are being accepted on a rolling basis — and one Empowered woman will be selected each month starting in April.

Nominate her now at www.toryburch.com/empoweredwomen.

From Your Site Articles

This family’s journey to adoption demonstrates the transformative power of love

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We're redefining what normal means in these uncertain times, and although this is different for all of us, love continues to transform us for the better.

Love is what united Marie-Claire and David Archbold, who met while taking a photography class. "We went into the darkroom to see what developed," they joke—and after a decade of marriage, they know firsthand the deep commitment and connection romantic love requires.

All photos courtesy of Marie-Claire and David Archbold

However, their relationship became even sweeter when they adopted James: a little boy with a huge heart.

In the United States alone, there are roughly 122,000 children awaiting adoption according to the latest report from the U.S Department of Health and Human Services. While the goal is always for a child to be parented by and stay with their biological family, that is not always a possibility. This is where adoption offers hope—not only does it create new families, it gives birth parents an avenue through which to see their child flourish when they are not able to parent. For the right families, it's a beautiful thing.

The Archbolds knew early on that adoption was an option for them. David has three daughters from a previous marriage, but knowing their family was not yet complete, the couple embarked on a two-year journey to find their match. When the adoption agency called and told them about James, they were elated. From the moment they met him, the Archbolds knew he was meant to be part of their family. David locked eyes with the brown-eyed baby and they stared at each other in quiet wonder for such a long time that the whole room fell silent. "He still looks at me like that," said David.

The connection was mutual and instantaneous—love at first sight. The Archbolds knew that James was meant to be a part of their family. However, they faced significant challenges requiring an even deeper level of commitment due to James' medical condition.

James was born with congenital hyperinsulinism, a rare condition that causes his body to overproduce insulin, and within 2 months of his birth, he had to have surgery to remove 90% of his pancreas. There was a steep learning curve for the Archbolds, but they were already in love, and knew they were committed to the ongoing care that'd be required of bringing James into their lives. After lots of research and encouragement from James' medical team, they finally brought their son home.

Today, three-year-old James is thriving, filled with infectious joy that bubbles over and touches every person who comes in contact with him. "Part of love is when people recognize that they need to be with each other," said his adoptive grandfather. And because the Archbolds opted for an open adoption, there are even more people to love and support James as he grows.

This sweet story is brought to you by Sumo Citrus®. This oversized mandarin is celebrated for its incredible taste and distinct looks. Sumo Citrus is super-sweet, enormous, easy-to-peel, seedless, and juicy without the mess. Fans of the fruit are obsessive, stocking up from January to April when Sumo Citrus is in stores. To learn more, visit sumocitrus.com and @sumocitrus.

From Your Site Articles

Social media spats usually end in ugly words or blocking people—unless you're Patton Oswalt.

Actor and comedian Patton Oswalt has made a name for himself off screen as a blunt yet caring, compassionate human. His raw openness after his wife's unexpected passing and his willingness to engage in conversations about depression and dadhood after her death has touched people's hearts and opened people's minds.

And once again on Twitter, Oswalt has proven that he is unquestionably one of the most kind-hearted dudes in Hollywood.

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