For about half a century, the Ford Foundation has been providing support, through seed funding, core financial support, and capacity-building grants, to groups who use litigation to promote equality and justice for historically disadvantaged groups. Although the role of public interest litigation has precipitated many positive improvements, its effect in producing social reform is ambiguous and there is no clear definition of ‘success’.
This chapter draws on examples from the activities of Ford Foundation grantees in the United States during the 1980s and 90s, with particular reference to women’s rights, minority rights and immigrant or refugee rights. The authors argue that court-based work remains vital but that a holistic social change strategy must also include some or all of the following: community mobilisation, leadership and economic development, media outreach, policy analysis and empirical research.
Public interest litigation provides crucial leverage as well as credibility, influence and access to power for historically disadvantaged groups. It can also be employed to change public policy and to enforce, implement and monitor this change. Long- term funding for this area of work must be guaranteed, but in changing political and social circumstances there is a need for a new articulation of goals whereby litigation is integrated further into a broader strategy for social change.
Other conclusions from the chapter are that:
- Even when a lawsuit is unsuccessful, it can help to publicise issues, mobilise constituents, garner resources and legitimate an outsider’s position. It is therefore a source of political capital.
- Public education campaigns are crucial to support litigation efforts because courts do not automatically trigger a change in people’s attitudes
- New linkages and partnerships must be formed between civil rights organisations, grassroots organisations, the business community, government and academic institutions.
- A court- based strategy can encourage community mobilisation by raising consciousness, providing resources and creating allies. This mobilisation then constitutes a fundamental tool for long-term social change.
Although support for litigation and legal advocacy remains as necessary and important as ever, the focus should be on developing multi-pronged approaches (legal, public education and legislative), with donors providing support for collaborative efforts that promote capacity-building.
- Public interest litigation is a long process, with the initial court order only the first step of many. Litigating groups therefore also require long-term core institutional support to enable them to monitor compliance.
- Donors can also play a role in encouraging grantees to broaden their bases of support and to explore innovative, entrepreneurial forms of financing linked to public education and mobilisation goals.
- New forms of public advocacy and education are needed to generate community support for the achievement of social justice.
