Exploring Pro-Immigrant Rage Giving in the Context of the Anti-Immigrant Rhetoric and Policies of Donald Trump
Rage giving is a phenomenon in which individuals donate to nonprofit organizations or charitable causes as a reaction to events or policies that provoke outrage, frustration, or moral indignation. It is driven by an emotional response to perceived injustice or harm and it often transpires in the context of political, social, or cultural conflicts.
Research from J. Pedroza, S. Potochnick, and R. Santillano demonstrated pro-immigrant rage giving in which donations to nonprofits providing legal services to immigrants increased during the first term of Trump. This exemplified the important role of nonprofits as a counterforce that channeled public resistance to unwelcomed policies.
Study
The researchers referenced records from the Internal Revenue Service to pinpoint community-based organizations with a history of rendering legal assistance to immigrants. They also applied synthetic controlled methods to measure changes in financial resources before and after the 2016 presidential election in the U.S. The following are the findings:
• During the 2016 U.S. Election: Contributions to immigrant-serving legal aid nonprofits were 4 to 11 percentage points higher during the 2016 election than other nonprofits with similar prior trends.
• After 2016 and Through 2019: Funding remained elevated by 8 to 17 percentage points. Many immigrant-serving community-based organizations also reached the 90th percentile for nonprofit donations.
• Impact of Increased Funding: Nonprofits demonstrated adaptability by leveraging public support during a challenging political climate. They were viewed as essential to protecting immigrant rights.
Implications
The study demonstrated how organizations adapt to pressures from their environments, the role of the public in influencing support for advocacies or causes, and how socio-political events create opportunities for resource mobilization. It highlights the critical role of nonprofits as safeguards against unfavorable government policies.
Nevertheless, based on the findings, migrant-serving nonprofit organizations during the first term of Trump effectively mobilized in response to the anti-immigrant climate in the United States. They acted as a counterforce that leveraged the socio-political landscape to mitigate harm to and protect immigrant communities.
Nonprofits will struggle to serve immigrants with limited funding More research is still needed to measure how much the additional funding helped protect those rights. It also remains unclear if the public will respond similarly during the second term of Trump since sustaining initial surges of public support can be challenging.
FURTHER READINGS AND REFERENCES
- Pedroza, J., Potochnick, S., and Santillano, R. 2025. “The 2016 United States Election and Financial Support to Migrant-Serving Legal-Aid Organizations.” In International Migration Review. SAGE Publications. DOI: 1177/01979183241309573