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This is not the New Year’s message I was hoping to write. There was a moment this fall when things started feeling like they might just fall into place. We saw progress on the pandemic, and it felt like 2022 might herald a fresh beginning. But reality intervened, as it tends to do.
November’s presidential election results will have pulled the United States back from the brink of authoritarianism. After we’ve taken a moment to celebrate our achievement and rejuvenate, there comes the challenge of plotting a course forward. Because there’s no going back to some imagined normalcy. Many consequences of Trump’s presidency – cult of strongman personality, capture and erosion of the courts and other democratic institutions, normalization of misogyny and white nationalism, consolidation of Christian Right power, mobilization of vigilantes, enrichment of oligarchs, rise of a media disinformation infrastructure – will not be so easily undone.
Midterm elections are quickly approaching, and California’s new redistricting lines are already having an effect on the voting landscape. How the nonprofit and philanthropic sectors can help voters understand the implications of these changes before they head to the polls, is one of many issues to consider. Grassroots organizations have also been working tirelessly throughout the pandemic to try to protect access to safe and secure elections while also helping voters navigate campaign misinformation and disinformation.
The 2024 election results put us face to face with the brutal truth of rising fascism in our country and the reality of California’s return to conservative “tough-on-crime” policies. We know the communities that will be most impacted by the regressive and dangerous statewide and national legislation are the same communities that survive the oppression of state violence, criminalization, and incarceration. Our solidarity with grassroots movements for healing and community safety is needed now more than ever. As we consider what this moment requires of us, we want to reflect on the lessons and successes from CCJFG’s last year and recommit to our role of supporting funders standing with the people.
As we face the stinging backlash to progress and concerted efforts to challenge the movement for greater equity and inclusion, a new generation of organizers and leaders are defending these wins and building the power of communities to dismantle systems of oppression.
New organizations emerged in response to COVID-19, 2020’s racial reckoning, and to meet the rising needs and service gaps in communities. Many of these organizations are led by BIPOC leaders, have small budgets, small teams, and are often fiscally sponsored. What do these emerging organizations need for long term sustainability? How can funders support these organizations?
n mid-April, 18 funders from throughout California traveled to Fresno for the California Criminal Justice Funders Group Central Valley Funder Convening. They were joined by 20 movement leaders representing community organizations throughout the Central San Joaquin Valley from Stockton to Bakersfield. Take a look at the report back, here.