Colcom Foundation is an

anti-immigration Opposition to immigration, also known as anti-immigration, is a political position that seeks to restrict immigration. In the modern sense, immigration refers to the entry of people from one state or territory into another state or territory in ...

private foundation A private foundation is a Tax exemption, tax-exempt organization that does not rely on broad public support and generally claims to serve humanitarian purposes. Unlike a Foundation (nonprofit), charitable foundation, a private foundation does no ...

established in 1996 by Cordelia Scaife May, a

Mellon family The Mellon family is a wealthy and influential American family from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The family includes Andrew Mellon, one of the longest serving U.S. Treasury Secretaries, while other members worked in the judicial, banking, financia ...

heiress. It is a major funding source for the anti-immigration movement in the United States, supporting several organizations designated as hate groups by the

Southern Poverty Law Center The Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) is an American 501(c)(3) nonprofit legal advocacy organization specializing in civil rights and public interest litigation. Based in Montgomery, Alabama, it is known for its legal cases against white ...

(SPLC). The foundation also focuses on

population control Population control is the practice of artificially maintaining the size of any population. It simply refers to the act of limiting the size of an animal population so that it remains manageable, as opposed to the act of protecting a species from ...

environmental conservation Environmental conservation may refer to: * Environmental protection * Nature conservation {{disambiguation ...

, and civic and environmental projects, especially in the

Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, United States, and its county seat. It is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, second-most populous city in Pennsylvania (after Philadelphia) and the List of Un ...

area where it is based.

History and activities

The Colcom Foundation was founded in 1996 by Cordelia Scaife May, an heiress to the

. When May died in 2005, she left close to half of her fortune to the foundation, which totaled over $400 million. The Colcom Foundation has stated that their mission is "to promote sustainable immigration that won’t overwhelm the environment or the economy". It has played a significant role in shaping immigration policy in the United States through its extensive funding of organizations that advocate for reduced immigration levels. Since the early 2000s, the foundation has provided tens of millions of dollars to groups such as the

Center for Immigration Studies The Center for Immigration Studies (CIS) is an American anti-immigration think tank. It favors far lower immigration numbers and produces analyses to further those views. The CIS was founded by historian Otis L. Graham alongside eugenicist a ...

(CIS), the

Federation for American Immigration Reform The Federation for American Immigration Reform (FAIR) is a nonprofit, anti-immigration organization in the United States. The group publishes position papers, organizes events, and runs campaigns in order to advocate for changes in U.S. immigr ...

(FAIR), and NumbersUSA—organizations that were originally part of a network established by the anti-immigration activist and

white nationalist White nationalism is a type of racial nationalism or pan-nationalism which espouses the belief that white people are a Race (human categorization), raceHeidi Beirich and Kevin Hicks. "Chapter 7: White nationalism in America". In Perry, Barbara ...

John Tanton. According to a 2019 report by the ''

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette The ''Pittsburgh Post-Gazette'', also known simply as the PG, is the largest newspaper serving Greater Pittsburgh, metropolitan Pittsburgh in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. Descended from the ''Pittsburgh Gazette'', established in 1786 as the fi ...

'', Colcom contributed $33.8 million to immigration-focused organizations between June 30, 2017, and June 30, 2018. Several of the groups funded by the Colcom Foundation have been designated as hate groups by the

(SPLC), including CIS, FAIR, and Californians for Population Stabilization. Some of the groups have also promoted

views. In 2018, Colcom's sponsorship of Pittsburgh's Holiday Market drew criticism from immigrant rights advocates. Due to the controversy, signage mentioning the Colcom Foundation was removed from the market. In 2020, immigrant rights activists launched a campaign to discourage Pittsburgh-area civic and environmental groups from accepting money from the Colcom Foundation. Several organizations subsequently severed their ties to the foundation.

References

External links

Colcom Foundation
{{Authority control Conservation and environmental foundations based in the United States 1996 establishments in Pennsylvania Organizations established in 1996 Anti-immigration politics in the United States