NISGUA May Match 2025

Dear friends and family,

This month will mark 20 years (holy crap!) since I graduated from college and began my work with the Network in Solidarity with the People of Guatemala (NISGUA). It is a moment of both challenge and opportunity. The recent closure of USAID and other critical global programs under the Trump administration has already affected millions of people around the world, including many in Guatemala. NISGUA faces an uncertain future. As such, I am working to ensure we have enough resources for salaries, programs, and future solidarity over the coming year.

Our ambitious goal for this year's May Match Campaign year is to raise $110K by the end of May– half of which has already been secured from a handful of generous “seed donors,” and the other half from YOU, our grassroots base of supporters. My personal goal is to raise $3000 in the next two weeks. Every dollar donated will be matched up to $55,000. Can you contribute $55, $550, or any amount that is meaningful for you today?

With so much going on in our country and in our world, it can feel overwhelming to know where to focus your mental energies and financial resources. So, here's my pitch:

Over the last two decades, I have had the great privilege of working alongside activists and communities that are well-versed in fighting state-sponsored repression. Genocide survivors in Guatemala, Rohingya and other ethnic minorities in Myanmar; these are communities whose governments have been engaging in corruption, undermining the rule of law, and fomenting violence against vulnerable people for years. In this political moment in the United States, we have SO MUCH to learn from these communities about what to do when your government is failing you. We can and should be seeking their wisdom about how to build networks of mutual support, how to be resilient in the face of fear, how to organize effectively when dissent is stifled, and how to do all of it while honoring the deep wisdom of our ancestors and respectfully stewarding our planet’s resources.

This is a huge part of what NISGUA does. We build connections between similarly impacted movements in the U.S. and in Guatemala so they can learn from one another. Through speaking tours in the U.S., delegations to Guatemala, horizontal exchanges and other activities, NISGUA creates opportunities for frontline activists to share strategies of resistance and resilience. All of this is done on a shoestring budget by a small, courageous team of staff and volunteers. The May Match Campaign accounts for almost half of our entire annual operating budget. There are few organizations that have so much impact with so few resources.

Every May, I am humbled by the way my community shows up for NISGUA. I cannot express how grateful I am for your continued support. By making a gift today, you'll ensure NISGUA can continue to learn from our Guatemalan partners and inch us all closer to a more just future. Thank you, so much, for all you do to get us there.

Love,

Jillian