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I’ll be honest: I’ve been putting off answering your question “How do foundation leaders stay clear-eyed in this moment?” As I sit to write, our Northern California skies are hazy with wildfire smoke. It strikes me as a metaphor for this moment, 19 months into COVID, when our visions of a post-pandemic future are shifting yet again. I definitely don’t feel clear-eyed.
San Francisco, CA -- Northern California Grantmakers today released a REPORT examining the effects of the 2017 North Bay Fires on the arts communities in three counties. Commissioned with funding from the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, the report finds that artists have been profoundly impacted by the fires, due to physical and economic loss as well as emotional trauma, with the impact of the fires disproportionately felt among arts organizations serving communities of color in the region.
Since its founding, Akonadi Foundation has focused on supporting power building and organizing to advance racial justice in Oakland and around the state. In 2000, a year after Akonadi Foundation was launched, California voters approved Proposition 21, which targeted young people of color. Under Prop. 21, many 14-year-olds could be tried as adults rather than in juvenile court, and 16-year olds could be incarcerated in adult prisons. At Akonadi Foundation, we were inspired by the activism and efforts of youth advocates and youth-led groups against this racist ballot measure.
Thank you, Marcus and Dwayne, and Cathy and Dimple, for your courageous leadership. And Dimple, thank you for inviting me into the conversation to answer "What exactly holds us back from making more dramatic transformations in our philanthropy?" I’m humbled to be a part of it. I propose that what holds us back from making more dramatic transformations in philanthropy are three beliefs that we inherit and internalize from white supremacist culture.
We no longer have to wonder what we would have done if we’d been around at the peak of the civil rights movement. Whatever it is, we will be doing it now. These words ring from our conference. This moment demands more from us. This moment demands we be explicitly clear: Black lives matter! This moment demands we say their names: Nina Pop, Breonna Taylor, George Floyd, Ahmaud Arbery, Tony McDade and remember Oscar Grant.
As a member of a marginalized community, I keep getting tasked with playing the “educator” or “teacher” in my institution. I’m a member of the communities we aim to serve, but I feel uncomfortable serving as a spokesperson or ambassador for my communities. I hold authentic relationships with these grantee-partners outside of philanthropy and feel pressure to represent the MULTIPLE perspectives of my communities. Help, what can I do?
Thanks, Marcus and Dwayne, for your inspiring words and your leadership. As good discussions go, you’ve both got me thinking. And thanks to Marcus for tagging me and inviting me to jump into the conversation. Marcus’s “meet the moment” question for me is a good one: How does philanthropy need to work differently in these complex and turbulent times?