Charitable Giving

The Unemployed Philosophers Guild regularly takes a break from pondering "the Good" in order to do some good.

In addition to the philanthropy of its individual members, UPG contributes more than $60,000 each year in the form of donations, products and services, and grants in support of a variety of organizations and causes:

 

ActBlue LLC

ActBlue is a nonprofit, building fundraising technology for the left. Our mission is to democratize power and help small-dollar donors make their voices heard in a real way.

American Foundation for Suicide Prevention  

 AFSP raises awareness, funds scientific research and provides resources and aid to those affected by suicide.

American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals

The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals® (ASPCA®) was the first humane society to be established in North America and is, today, one of the largest in the world. The ASPCA’s mission, as stated by founder Henry Bergh in 1866, is “to provide effective means for the prevention of cruelty to animals throughout the United States.”

Amnesty International

Amnesty International is a global movement of millions of people demanding human rights for all people – no matter who they are or where they are. We are the world’s largest grassroots human rights organization.

Astronomy on Tap  

Scientists, educators, writers, artists & more reveal how they explore the universe at a bar near you!

Each FREE event features accessible, engaging science presentations on topics ranging from planets to black holes to galaxies to the beginning of the Universe. Presenters are from local research and educational institutions – and most events have games and prizes to test and reward your new-found knowledge. There is always lots of time to ask questions and interact with the presenters and other scientists who inevitably tag along for the beer.

Bard Prison Initiative

The Bard Prison Initiative is dedicated to expanding access to ambitious, full-scholarship, liberal arts education to communities excluded from the university experience. BPI extends the full breadth and depth of the Bard College curriculum into six New York State prisons and currently enrolls more than 300 incarcerated students in programs culminating in degrees from Bard College.  

Behind the Scenes

“Don't Leave Your Colleagues in the Dark”

Behind the Scenes provides financial support to entertainment technology industry professionals if they, or their immediate dependent family, are seriously ill or injured.

Brain Pickings

“Oh hello. My name is Maria Popova. I am a reader and writer, and I write about what I read here on Brain Pickings — my one-woman labor of love. It is an inquiry into what it means to live a decent, substantive, rewarding life, and a record of my own becoming as a person — intellectually, creatively, spiritually — drawn from my extended marginalia on the search for meaning across literature, science, art, philosophy, and the various other tentacles of human thought and feeling.”

Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS

Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS provides lifesaving medication and health care, nutritious meals, counseling and emergency assistance to those living with HIV/AIDS and other life-threatening illnesses in all 50 states. 

“What We Do Together, Makes a Difference”

Brooklyn Community Bail Fund      

Brooklyn Community Bail Fund secures the freedom of New Yorkers who would otherwise be detained pretrial due to their poverty alone. We are committed to challenging the criminalization of race, poverty and immigration status, the practice of putting a price on fundamental rights, and the persistent myth that bail is a necessary element of the justice system.

Leveraging our groundbreaking work as a charitable bail fund, BCBF joined with other community-based organizations, immigration advocates and New York Immigrant Family Unity Project (NYIFUP) attorneys to form the New York Immigrant Freedom Fund (NYIFF). Operated by BCBF, NYIFF secures the freedom of New Yorkers held in ICE detention who cannot afford to pay bond.

Brooklyn Public Library

An invaluable public library in the heart of Brooklyn – home to the Ivory Tower of The Philosophers Guild – and their holdings provide the Guild with many resources we need to develop the products you love!

“Your support helps Brooklyn Public Library provide free access to the books, technology, literacy programs and recreation that many Brooklynites can't afford elsewhere. With your generosity, we can continue to be here for all of Brooklyn.”

The Center for Justice and Accountability

The Center for Justice and Accountability identifies and prosecutes the world’s worst human rights criminals. CJA is relentless in the pursuit of justice for those who have endured the horrors of torture, crimes against humanity and other severe human rights abuses. Time, distance, danger, politics – nothing deters CJA in seeking vindication for our clients.

Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF)        

Doctors without Borders provides medical humanitarian assistance in more than 70 countries. We provide medical assistance to people affected by conflict, epidemics, disasters, or exclusion from healthcare. Our teams are made up of tens of thousands of health professionals, logistic and administrative staff - bound together by our charter.  Our actions are guided by medical ethics and the principles of impartiality, independence and neutrality. We are a non-profit, self-governed, member-based organisation.

End the Backlog

 END THE BACKLOG is a program of the Joyful Heart Foundation, a national non-profit organization founded by actress and activist Mariska Hargitay with the mission to transform society’s response to sexual assault, domestic violence, and child abuse, support survivors’ healing, and end this violence forever.

END THE BACKLOG, the cornerstone of Joyful Heart’s Policy & Advocacy work, focuses on shining a light on the rape kit backlog in the United States. Our goal is to end this injustice by conducting groundbreaking research identifying the extent of the nation’s backlog and best practices for eliminating it; expanding the national dialogue on rape kit testing through increased public awareness, engaging communities and government agencies and officials; and advocating for comprehensive rape kit reform legislation and policies at the local, state and federal levels. Ultimately, we seek to change attitudes about sexual violence and abuse, educate the public, improve systems to lessen the trauma survivors experience and ensure greater access to justice for survivors.

The Episcopal Actors’ Guild

The Episcopal Actors' Guild provides emergency aid and support to professional performers of all faiths who are undergoing financial crisis. EAG also helps emerging artists advance their careers through scholarships, awards, and performance opportunities.

Equal Justice Initiative

The Equal Justice Initiative is committed to ending mass incarceration and excessive punishment in the United States, to challenging racial and economic injustice, and to protecting basic human rights for the most vulnerable people in American society.

Everytown for Gun Safety Support Fund

Everytown for Gun Safety Support Fund seeks to improve our understanding of the causes of gun violence and the means to reduce it – by conducting groundbreaking original research, developing evidence-based policies, and communicating this knowledge in the courts and the court of public opinion.

Henry Street Settlement    

Founded in 1893 by social work and public health pioneer Lillian Wald and based on Manhattan's Lower East Side, Henry Street Settlement delivers a wide range of social service, arts and health care programs to more than 50,000 New Yorkers each year.

The Humane Society of the United States  

We fight the big fights to end suffering for all animals. Together with millions of supporters, we take on puppy mills, factory farms, trophy hunts, animal testing and other cruel industries. With our affiliates, we rescue and care for thousands of animals every year through our animal rescue team’s work and other hands-on animal care services. We fight all forms of animal cruelty to achieve the vision behind our name: A humane society. 

Jewish Voice for Peace                   

Jewish Voice for Peace opposes anti-Jewish, anti-Muslim, and anti-Arab bigotry and oppression.  JVP seeks an end to the Israeli occupation of the West Bank, Gaza Strip, and East Jerusalem; security and self-determination for Israelis and Palestinians; a just solution for Palestinian refugees based on principles established in international law; an end to violence against civilians; and peace and justice for all peoples of the Middle East.

Kids for a Better Future   

​​​Kids for a Better Future (KBF) is a non-profit organization run entirely by and for children, based in New York City.  We're dedicated to helping other children – considering the privileges we're lucky enough to have, including food, shelter and education, we consider it our responsibility to do our part for kids who don't always have those things.

Long Reach Long Riders

The Long Reach Long Riders are a horde of theatre technicians/motorcycle enthusiasts from around the USA, Canada and beyond who ride to raise money for charity and have been doing so since 2004. 

“Out of the Wings and Into the World”

MoveOn.org

MoveOn is where millions mobilize for a better society—one where everyone can thrive.

Whether it’s supporting a candidate, passing legislation, or changing our culture, MoveOn members are committed to an inclusive and progressive future. We envision a world marked by equality, sustainability, justice, and love. And we mobilize together to achieve it

The New York Times Neediest Cases Fund

The New York Times Neediest Cases Fund has raised over $300 million since it was established in 1911, providing direct assistance to those struggling in New York and beyond. The New York Times Company underwrites all administrative costs incurred by the fund. The Neediest Cases Fund invests unrestricted contributions of $100,000 or more from trusts and estates in an endowment; the income will go into the next year’s campaign.

New Sanctuary Coalition

For 10 years, the New Sanctuary Coalition has been led by and for immigrants to stop the inhumane system of deportations and detentions in this country. Our small and scrappy team works with an army of over 500 volunteers to provide person-to-person support to many hundreds of immigrants — the people we call “friends,” not clients — facing detention and deportation. New Sanctuary springs from New York’s faith-based and social justice communities and forms a unique family of citizens and immigrants, bound by a love of humanity and mutual respect.

Planned Parenthood Federation of America Inc.  

The mission of Planned Parenthood is: to provide comprehensive reproductive and complementary health care services in settings which preserve and protect the essential privacy and rights of each individual; to advocate public policies which guarantee these rights and ensure access to such services; to provide educational programs which enhance understanding of individual and societal implications of human sexuality; to promote research and the advancement of technology in reproductive health care and encourage understanding of their inherent bioethical, behavioral, and social implications.

Planned Parenthood of New York City, Inc.

For more than 100 years, Planned Parenthood of New York City (PPNYC) has been a beacon of hope for the thousands of individuals and families who rely on us for essential sexual and reproductive health care, innovative educational programs, and effective advocacy. 

Red Hook Initiative                 

RHI believes that social change to overcome systemic inequities begins with empowered youth. In partnership with community adults, they nurture young people in Red Hook to be inspired, resilient, and healthy, and to envision themselves as co-creators of their lives, community and society.

Refugee and Immigrant Center for Education and Legal Services (RAICES)

We defend the rights of immigrants and refugees, empower individuals, families and communities, and advocate for liberty and justice. We envision a compassionate society where all people have the right to migrate and human rights are guaranteed.

The Southern Poverty Law Center

The Southern Poverty Law Center is dedicated to fighting hate and bigotry and to seeking justice for the most vulnerable members of our society. Using litigation, education, and other forms of advocacy, the Center works toward the day when the ideals of equal justice and equal opportunity will be a reality.

Women for Afghan Women

Women for Afghan Women (WAW) is a grassroots civil society organization dedicated to protecting and promoting the rights of disenfranchised Afghan women and girls in Afghanistan and New York. In particular, WAW works to help Afghan women and girls exercise their rights to pursue their individual potential to self-determination, and to representation in all areas of life—political, social, cultural, and economic. WAW relentlessly advocates for women’s rights and challenges the norms that underpin gender-based violence to influence attitudes and bring about change.

 

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