Welcome to the Remix, as we take our latest spin around the economy. This Remix column ("What Is Social Justice Philanthropy? A Donor Network Asks Hard Questions") takes a deep dive into the subject of social justice philanthropy.
Social justice philanthropy is a bit of a strange bird—its goal is to undo social, racial, economic, and environmental injustices, but its method for doing so employs resources that often have been generated by those same social, racial, economic, and environmental injustices. How does this strategy of “using the master’s tools to dismantle the master’s house,” as Audre Lord put it, work? Simply put, not easily.
My latest column reflects on a series of webinars offered earlier this year by Resource Generation, a network of donors under the age of 35 who are either high net worth donors themselves or come from wealthy families. Members of Resource Generation—who are organized into city-based chapters and collectively donate nearly $100 million a year—are aware of the challenges inherent in social justice philanthropy. The webinar series, in fact, was an attempt to name and address these tensions.
What is the state of the field? The stories offered provide windows into some of the challenges—and strategies for addressing those challenges. At the individual level, strategies profiled focused on ceding control by partnering with others—both to make grant decisions and to figure out what processes are most likely to work for beneficiaries. The conversations also examined the complexities of donor-advised funds—which, on one hand, make it easier to give, but, on the other hand, can often become parking lots for donations that can take years to fully make it into the hands of operating nonprofits.
Broader themes were addressed, too, including changing who is at the philanthropic table (such as by supporting Black-led and Indigenous-led funds), embracing a broad view of reparations that encompasses both financial compensation and healing, and investing to build a solidarity economy to create an economy where ownership of resources is broadly shared.
What is clear from the various conversations is that even as many in the field of social justice philanthropy are expanding their sights and developing new strategies to empower community groups and cede control, multiple challenges remain.
As you read this article, I encourage you to reflect on the state of social justice philanthropy and how (and whether) the promise of using philanthropy to radically redress inequality can be realized. Until the next Remix column, I remain,
Your Remix Man:
Steve Dubb
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