Common, Jack Antonoff, Decemberists, Oh Boy Records & More Help Raise Funds For Immigrant Support Groups

Just like you can count on Americans to open up their wallets in a time of national crisis or natural disaster, the same appears to be true during this period of manufactured trauma created by the Trump administration’s family separation policy.

With more than 2,300 undocumented immigrant children split from their parents over the past month due to the White House’s widely criticized “zero tolerance” immigration policy, the artistic community is stepping up to do its part to raise funds for the impacted families.

Jack White‘s Third Man Records announced on Wednesday (June 20) that anyone visiting its Nashville and Detroit stores with proof of their $50 donation to RAICES will score free, limited-edition vinyl swag from the label. 

Visit our #Nashville/#Detroit stores w/ proof of your $50+ donation to @RAICESTEXAS (or other org helping #immigrantchildren separated from their families) & choose a free ltd exclusive LP from our stash (while supplies last) on us. https://t.co/DgwZY0TG6n #familiesbelongtogether pic.twitter.com/F0aBSDqwFx

— Third Man Records (@thirdmanrecords) June 20, 2018

Folk icon John Prine‘s Oh Boy Records is also offering to do their part by donating $15 for every LP and $5 for every CD version sold of Prine’s first new album in 13 years, The Tree of Forgiveness, sold on the label’s website through June 30 to the RAICES Family Reunification Bond Fund.

From now til 6/30(while supplies last), Oh Boy Records will donate $15 for every vinyl and $5 for every CD of The Tree of Forgiveness sold on our website to the Raices Family Reunification Bond Fund. You can find more information about the fund here: https://t.co/GbBtVi9Ho4

— Oh Boy Records — (@ohboyrecords) June 20, 2018

Bleachers‘ Jack Antonoff said he was feeling “very helpless,” but knows that donating to good causes can alleviate some of that emptiness, so he promised to match donations up to $10,000 to the Actblue fundraiser to Support Kids at the Border. The National‘s Aaron Dessner has also encouraged donations to that organization,  as did CHVRCHES‘ Lauren Mayberry.

feel very helpless but donating is one great to help if you can. i will match donations up to 10k here https://t.co/2RRpXR0zic please share and help. donations will directly help those at the boarder who are being treated with no humanity. anything counts. tweet back receipts

— jackantonoff (@jackantonoff) June 20, 2018

Calling the criminalization and separation of immigrant families “inhumane, cruel and unacceptable,” Common pointed to five concrete actions his followers could take to fight against the government-sanctioned rending of undocumented immigrants at the border.

The criminalization and separation of families immigrating to America is inhumane, cruel, and unacceptable. They should be embraced with compassion and love instead of hate and brutality: https://t.co/RCP80D7ug4 pic.twitter.com/9hLVsVCw9x

— COMMON (@common) June 20, 2018

Thursday was Don’t Think Twice comedian Mike Birbiglia’s birthday, but instead of gifts he encouraged his Twitter followers to kick in some money to RAICES.

Today was my birthday. No gifts please. But if you like me and you’re into reuniting families, maybe kick 5 or 10 bucks to the good people here. Or maybe more. Or just retweet. I’ll give a dollar for every RT. https://t.co/q0tJYWWal6

— Mike Birbiglia (@birbigs) June 21, 2018

The casts of the One Day at a Time reboot and Vida also got together to encourage fans to donate to the RAICES Family Reunification and Bond Fund, which at press time had raised $5.2 million of its $6.5 million goal.

One Day at a Time & Vida are teaming up to end family separation at the border. Donate here to directly support legal services for detained separated parents and funding for their release. #onevidaatatime #keepfamiliestogether https://t.co/GN9YMqjsAM pic.twitter.com/f3MQzv2Cj2

— Gloria Calderón Kellett (@everythingloria) June 19, 2018

 

#Repost @vidawriters ??? In just 6 weeks, upon being detained at the border, 1,995 children have been separated from their families and now a tent city has cropped up in Texas built to detain immigrant children. We have to do something. The #vidawriters Room challenges @gloriakellett and the @odaatnetflix Writers Room to take the #OneVidaAtATime Challenge to #keepfamiliestogether & #endfamilyseparation by donating to @raicestexas to directly support legal services for detained separated families, including providing bonds to get parents released from detention so they can re-unite with their children. Will you do it? HERE’S WHAT TO DO: -COLLECTION: Collect donations (any amount will do) from your show’s writers and support staff — and — Get your parent company to match that amount. -DONATE: Make the donation to https://actionnetwork.org/ fundraising/bondfund -POST YOUR CHALLENGE: Post a video or pic of your writers room/staff holding up signs that say either #keepfamiliestogether and/or #endfamilyseparation, challenging another TV writers room.

A post shared by Tanya Saracho (@tanyasaracho) on Jun 19, 2018 at 3:43pm PDT

The #OneVidaAtATime initiative has united our STARZ family and our community. We stand with our writers & creators and their efforts to #KeepFamiliesTogether and proudly support them with a contribution of $10,000 to @raicestexas. pic.twitter.com/4jkWyGBnMB

— STARZ (@STARZ) June 21, 2018

According to The Hollywood Reporter, by late Wednesday, the Twitter accounts for Legends of Tomorrow ,Grand Hotel, Riverdale, On My Block, and Marlon had also joined in the cause, while Crazy Ex-Girlfriend star Rachel Bloom joined the growing list of TV writers and casts taking a stand against family separation, urging her followers to donate to the Action Network RAICES fundraiser.

pic.twitter.com/uLcAxQvGS3

— Rachel Bloom (@Racheldoesstuff) June 20, 2018

Finally, one of largest efforts to date began as a modest attempt not from an artist, but by a couple named Charlotte and Dave Willner, who intended to raise $1,500 to help an immigrant family raise money to post bond. After seeing the now-infamous picture of a 2 year-old Honduran girl crying while her mother was being questioned near the U.S.-Mexican border, the couple kicked off the Facebook funding push, which according to NPR has raised more than $17 million so far for the Refugee and Immigrant Center for Education and Legal Services (RAICES), the Texas nonprofit that helps provide free legal support for immigrants. Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg is also encouraging FBers to donate to RAICES and the Texas Civil Rights Project, noting in a post on Tuesday (June 19) that he has already done so.