WEEKLY NEWS  //  FEBRUARY 13, 2025

Dear Colleagues,

There is perhaps no better evidence of the power of demographic data than the number of strategies in Project 2025 aimed at reducing access to it and undermining public confidence about it.   

Here are just a few key examples:

• Eliminating key demographic data collection efforts by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) on race and gender in the workplace (pg. 581).
• Limiting National Institute for Health (NIH) and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) research on gender identity (pg. 462).
• Politicizing federal data collection by replacing career statisticians at the Census Bureau with political appointees at the director and management levels (pg. 679) and eliminating community advisory committees deemed “hostile to conservative interests” (pg. 666), reducing the budget and eliminating annual surveys (pg. 680).
• Pre-emptively gerrymandering representation in congress by adding a citizenship question to the 2030 Census—likely leading to severe undercounts of immigrant communities in a time of heightened fear, while shifting Census outreach efforts to favor conservative areas. (pg. 680)
• Rolling back recent improvements to race and ethnicity questions that would have created a more representative count such as allowing people to multi-select race and ethnicity along with the inclusion of Middle Eastern/North African as an ethnic identity (pg. 680).
• Removing American Community Survey (ACS) questions deemed “too intrusive,” (pg. 680) while at the same time pushing for more intrusive federal data collection on abortion, requiring states to report detailed information on abortion procedures (pg. 455).
• Filing a lawsuit against the state of Illinois over SB2930 a new state law that promotes board transparency for nonprofits that regrant more than $1M.

WFN’s specific area of work to expand public access to demographic data through community-built projects may seem like a low priority amid the past two weeks in the U.S. which have included immigration raids at schools and churches, sudden freezes in lifesaving aid, and the purges in the federal workforce that target already institutionally marginalized populations.

But in response to these threats to public transparency and accountability, it is more important than ever for funders and donors to invest in alternative public data infrastructure to track and mitigate the impact of the U.S. Administration’s policies while also supporting targeted communities and grassroots organizations working to advance social justice. We are grateful for the infrastructure that Candid has built to allow nonprofits and foundations to publicly access demographic data in a way that is standardized, shared with consent, and freely accessible.

That’s why we encourage all nonprofits and funders in the U.S. to join 77,000 nonprofits who have already shared demographic data about their organization’s staff, leadership, and board through their GuideStar/Candid profile, and work towards operationalizing it as an annual process. This small action helps all of us understand the contours of the social sector landscape we are working in and track the impact of our efforts to advance equity and justice for all.

My hope is that we will be able to see in the data that philanthropy responded to this moment not with fear, but with rapid response funds, abundantly resourcing targeted communities with no strings attached.

Onward,

Sara Keilholtz
Women's Funding Network
Director of Data and Strategic Insights

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September 10-11, 2025 in Washington, D.C. 
Pre-Conference Policy Action Day on September 9, 2025

Calling all changemakers! Women's Funding Network is accepting proposals for Feminist Funded ’25, the largest global gathering of feminist philanthropy leaders. Submit your ideas on themes like economic justice, feminist advocacy, and reproductive justice by February 17 at 5:00pm EST. Let’s co-create transformative solutions for gender justice. Learn more and apply here.

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News from WFN

NEW MEMBER & 2025 WFN MEMBERSHIP RENEWAL

Our network thrives on the strength and diversity of our members. Please join us in welcoming to the network new WFN member Noel Pacarro Brown.

Please also join us in appreciating WFN members who have renewed for 2025:

• Anu Kumar
• Aurora Women and Girls Foundation
• Fondo Centroamericano de Mujeres (FCAM)
• Global Fund for Women
• Kerry Gardner
• Megan Radavich
• Metrowest Women's Fund
• NewMexicoWomen.Org
• Rise Up
• Sarah Vaill
• Texas Women’s Foundation
• VidaAfrolatina
• Washington Area Women's Foundation
• WNY Women's Foundation
• Women’s Foundation of the South
• Women's Fund of Greater Fort Wayne
• Women's Fund of Western Massachusetts

If you have questions about membership, please contact us.

WFN ANNOUNCEMENT

Last week's How the Care Movement is Organizing Against Devastating Federal Tax and Budget Cuts webinar with Care for All with Respect and Equity (CARE) Fund, Economic Opportunity Funders, Tax Equity Funders Network, and Women’s Funding Network brought together experts to share strategies and resources with funders. Access the webinar recording, slides, and additional materials here.

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Just one day after President Donald Trump signed an executive order banning biological males from participating in women’s sports the NCAA followed suit, also barring transgender women from competing in women’s college athletics. The decision has upset many in the transgender community, including Schuyler Bailar, the first openly transgender NCAA Division 1 swimmer.

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