Racial Equity & Justice

What Racial Equity & Justice does

Racial Equity & Justice (REJ) is a BIPOC-led non-profit founded in 2019 by David Patrick and Desiree Vargas, headquartered in Bangor/Orono, Maine on the ancestral territory of the Wabanaki peoples. The organization delivers racial equity training, workplace consultation, academic support, advocacy, and community workshops to BIPOC communities, academic institutions, businesses, non-profits, and municipalities. Training programs are CEU-certified, allowing licensed professionals to receive continuing education credits, which expands the addressable buyer base into corporate L&D and credentialed-practitioner segments.

REJ operates two commercial arms in addition to its non-profit core. The REJ Firm is a professional services subsidiary offering consulting, facilitation, and workshop delivery. Elder Rose Botanicals is an apothecary product line with individually priced items ranging from $2 to $25, providing a low-ticket consumer revenue stream and a brand-building surface distinct from consulting-only peers. Named partners and clients referenced in available material include NAACP Maine, the University of Maine System, and the City of Bangor, alongside eight named team members with explicitly multi-identity expertise spanning Black, Indigenous, Jewish, Latinx, neurodivergent, and LGBQ+ identities.

The business model combines earned revenue (consulting fees, training contracts, Elder Rose Botanicals product sales) with donations and likely grant funding typical of mission-driven non-profits. Geographic reach is anchored in Maine, though the organization claims national service delivery. There is no disclosed funding, no disclosed revenue, and no published financial statements, which materially limits revenue and growth assessment.

Name

Racial Equity & Justice

Legal name

Racial Equity & Justice

Website

https://racialequityandjustice.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2019

Operating status

Operating

Short description

Racial Equity & Justice is a BIPOC-led non-profit founded in 2019 that delivers racial equity training, workplace consultation, academic support, and advocacy to businesses, institutions, and municipalities, operating the REJ Firm services arm and the Elder Rose Botanicals apothecary product line.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) Consulting and Training Services

NAICS

Human Rights Organizations (813311)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300)

akta.pro primary industry

Racial & Ethnic Justice Organizations (BPAGAFAC)

akta.pro secondary industries

Human Rights & Anti-Discrimination Organizations (BPAGAFAB), Human Rights, Social Inclusion & Disability Inclusion (BPAGABAN)

Keywords

• Racial equity training
• Diversity consulting services
• BIPOC advocacy
• Community healing education
• Social justice consulting

Headquarters

HQ city

Bangor/Orono

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Consulting & Training Services: Professional consulting services including racial equity training, workplace consultation, and organizational analysis. Revenue generated through fee-for-service engagements with businesses, academic institutions, and non-profit organizations.
2. Community Healing Products: Sale of herbal apothecary products including tea blends, soap, essential oils, salves, tinctures, and bath salts. E-commerce sales of wellness and healing products to consumers.
3. Donations: The organization accepts donations to support free services for communities across the nation.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Racial Equity & Justice provides CEU-certified racial equity and diversity training, workplace consultation and intervention, academic support, advocacy services, and community healing workshops to Black, Brown, Indigenous, and Communities of Color, as well as to academic institutions, businesses, municipalities, and non-profits. The organization also operates the Elder Rose Botanicals apothecary product line (tea blends, soaps, essential oils, salves, tinctures, bath salts) and a professional services subsidiary (REJ Firm) for booking consultations and trainings.

Product overview

Racial Equity & Justice is a non-profit organization offering a portfolio of social services focused on racial equity and justice. The core offerings include CEU-certified racial equity and diversity training, workplace consultation and intervention, academic support services, event planning, advocacy services, and community support workshops. The organization also operates Elder Rose Botanicals, an apothecary product line featuring Indigenous herbal remedies. The REJ Firm operates as a professional services subsidiary for booking consultations and trainings. Services are offered to Black, Brown, Indigenous, and Communities of Color across Maine and nationally.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Elder Rose Botanicals: Herbal apothecary line offering ancestral knowledge, Indigenous herbal remedies, and cultural medicines for community healing. Products include tea blends, soap blends, essential oil blends, natural healing salves, tinctures, and bath salt brews.
• REJ Firm

Products and services

• Racial Equity & Diversity Training State of Maine CEU-certified comprehensive racial equity and diversity training tailored to business, organizational, and academic institution needs, including in-depth organizational analysis, proprietary REJ materials, solution-based discussions, and certificates of completion.
• Workplace Consultation & Intervention Professional training and solution-based interventions and conflict resolution services for workplace racial diversity and equality issues, including holistic approaches to educate staff, and diversity expert advisory for protocols, bylaws, and policies.
• Academic Support Services Educational racial justice talks, diversity trainings on campus or school, racial intervention conversations, consultation for multicultural departments, and guest speaker services for students.
• Advocacy Services Advocacy support for individuals and communities experiencing discrimination and bias, including meetings with schools, businesses, and municipalities, with focus on reallocating resources for marginalized communities.
• Community Support Workshops Workshops focused on healing for sexual assault survivors, survivors of racism and violent racist acts, those recovering after incarceration, decolonizing lives, and reclaiming traditions to build a better future.
• Elder Rose Botanicals (Community Healing Apothecary) Herbal apothecary and cultural spiritual support featuring Indigenous herbal remedies including tea blends, soap blends, essential oil blends, natural healing salves, tinctures, and bath salt brews for generational healing and community care.
• REJ Firm (Professional Services Subsidiary) Wholly-owned professional services subsidiary created by REJ co-founders for booking trainings, consultations, social services, and non-profit civil rights compliance consulting.
• Keynote & Public Speaking Public speaking and keynote services covering culture, diversity, personal and structural racism, intersectional activism, decolonization, healing, and empowerment topics, including tools of empowerment for Black and Brown communities, experiences of people of color in predominantly white spaces, and racial justice education for white allies.
• Event Planning & Collaboration Event planning assistance with diversity at executive planning tables, including creative planning and full coordination services for racial-equity-focused events and panels.

Named customers5 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Ten partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Peace & Justice Center of Eastern MainecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerActive partnership with steering committee membership. Multiple team members (Desiree Vargas, Dawn Neptune Adams, Ambureen Rana, Anthony Jackson) serve as consultants, steering committee members, or co-program directors with this organization. Collaborative community organizing and racial justice work.
• NAACP Bangor ChaptercoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerBoth REJ co-founders are members of the NAACP chapter in Bangor. David Patrick serves as Political Action Chair and Law Enforcement Liaison, investigating civil rights violations and partnering with institutions to advance civil rights in Maine.
• University of Maine Multicultural CentercoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerHost for panel discussions including 'Decolonizing Your Mind: With Indigenous Feminist Leadership' and Indigenous Leadership Panel for Native American Heritage Month. Co-founders speak at university events.
• Wabanaki CentercoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-hosted Indigenous Leadership Panel with University of Maine's Multicultural Center in honor of Native American Heritage Month.
• City of Bangor Advisory Committee on Racial Equity, Inclusion and Human RightscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-founders David Patrick and Desiree Vargas serve on this advisory committee, influencing local policy on racial equity and human rights.
• Maine Equal JusticecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAmbureen Rana serves as Community Organizer, working with low-income communities to advocate for systemic change.
• MaineTransNetminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerAmbureen Rana serves as Chair, providing consultation and organizing support for transgender and queer communities.
• Intersectional Feminist Resource CenterminorGTM or Marketing PartnerOrganized the 'Decolonizing Your Mind: With Indigenous Feminist Leadership' panel featuring co-founder Desiree Vargas.
• Sunlight Media CollectiveminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerDawn Neptune Adams is a journalist with Sunlight Media Collective. Photography from collective members documented REJ events and panels.
• Racial Equity and Justice FirmcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerA separate business entity created by REJ co-founders for professional services including booking trainings, consultations, and social services. Visit www.racialequityandjusticefirm.com

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Indigenous Environmental Network: Indigenous-led nonprofit addressing environmental justice and Indigenous rights. Comparable to REJ in its Indigenous-led structure, environmental justice advocacy, and connection to land-based cultural work — overlapping on the Elder Rose Botanicals and Dawn Neptune Adams pillars.
• Showing Up for Racial Justice (SURJ): National network mobilizing white allies for racial justice through education, training, and organizing. Comparable to REJ in offering racial equity training and consultation to institutions, with similar advocacy-driven operating model.
• National Equity Project: Education and consulting organization focused on racial equity and social justice leadership development. Comparable to REJ in delivering racial equity training, coaching, and organizational change support to schools and workplaces.
• The Praxis Project: National nonprofit supporting grassroots organizing for health justice and racial equity. Comparable to REJ in its BIPOC-led, movement-centered model combining training, advocacy, and community organizing across multiple issues.
• Race Forward: National racial justice organization that produces research, media, and training on structural racism. Highly comparable to REJ as a BIPOC-led entity advancing racial equity through consulting, training, and movement-building work.

Broad incumbents

• Pacific Educational Group: Established racial equity consulting firm serving schools and institutions nationwide. Comparable to REJ in core training and consulting offerings, with significantly broader geographic reach and institutional scale.
• NAACP: National civil rights organization advancing racial justice through advocacy, litigation, and education. REJ's co-founders hold leadership roles in the Bangor NAACP chapter, and the organizations share overlapping racial equity training and advocacy missions.

Regional players

• Wabanaki Alliance: Maine-based organization advocating for Wabanaki Nations' sovereignty, land, and resource rights. Comparable to REJ's Wabanaki territory grounding and Indigenous rights advocacy, with overlapping team members and partnership networks.
• ACLU of Maine: Maine affiliate of the ACLU providing civil rights advocacy and legal support. Operates in the same Maine geography and overlapping racial justice advocacy space as REJ, particularly on discrimination incident response and policy advocacy.
• Maine People's Alliance: Maine-based community organizing nonprofit working on racial, economic, and social justice. Operates in the same Maine geography with overlapping BIPOC community organizing and policy advocacy focus.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles8 records

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Racial Equity & Justice