Chubb makes $1m donation to causes advancing US racial justice

The Chubb Rule of Law Fund (CRLF) has awarded more than $1 million to projects that work to advance racial justice in the US.

The fund, controlled by Chubb, awarded four new grants, worth a total of $1.1 million between them, supporting initiatives intended to improve police and community relations in the US, and reducing racial inequities in the criminal justice process.

Three projects -  Equal Justice USA, the  Vera Institute of Justice and the  Southern Center for Human Rights (SCHR) received grants of $250,000 each. Equal Justice USA increases empathy, understanding, trust and accountability between community residents and police officers, while the Vera Institute works with prosecutors to reduce racial inequities throughout the criminal justice process. SCHR is developing a data model and database to provide an empirical basis to assess the impact of race in the administration of criminal justice in Georgia and Alabama.

The  Policing Project at NYU Law School was awarded $350,000 for two projects to reform policing practices. One supports the expansion of community policing practices to enhance accountability in Chicago, and the other seeks to improve responses to emergency 911 calls, to reduce the risk of disproportionate force being used.

CRLF was established in 2008 and is supported by 15 law firms and the Chubb Charitable Foundation. It has made 66 grants globally, to projects promoting the preservation and advancement of the rule of law, whether that is via the development of rules-based legal systems, improving administrative procedures or advancing racial equality.

Joseph Wayland, executive vice president and general counsel at Chubb Group, said events in the US in the last 12 months have highlighted the need to fight racial injustice. "As Chubb strives to create a culture of anti-racism, we recognise that we, as a company and as individuals, cannot be bystanders. Our support for philanthropy and citizenship, including this new round of CRLF projects, is one way we are advancing this goal," he said.