How Can We Dismantle White Supremacy in Fundraising?

Traditional approaches to fundraising have placed power in donors’ hands. It’s time to shift the system and let communities (and nonprofits!) lead. 

Before opening Emergence, I led fundraising for Thunder Valley CDC–a groundbreaking community development corporation on the Pine Ridge Reservation. Our vision was centered on the power of Lakota culture and community to create a thriving economy for all. Yet many donors we approached could only see barriers and deficiencies, not strength and opportunity. They had internalized the narrative that Pine Ridge is defined by poverty–and that the reservation community was in need of external solutions. 

By reinforcing the idea that some communities lack the capacity to solve challenges and need “saving,” traditional approaches to fundraising and philanthropy can actually perpetuate injustice. Standard fundraising practices have placed power in donors’ hands–and allowed them to influence, or even dictate, which solutions community-based organizations are able to invest in. 

It’s challenging to push back against the very system that allows nonprofits to do their important work. But that push back is essential to bring change to the philanthropic world. At Thunder Valley, we made an intentional decision to build relationships with donors who saw us as true partners–and who let our community’s vision guide funding priorities. It was a risk, but one that paid off: we grew the organization’s budget from under $500,000 to over eight million in just four years, helping to build a groundbreaking model for driving systemic community change. 

Now, at Emergence, we’re supporting nonprofits to take that same approach–and to seek out donors who truly support their visions. These are some of the strategies we can use to bring power back into community’s hands when it comes to fundraising:  

Stay grounded in your knowledge of community needs. It’s easy to get trapped in the cycle of creating new initiatives to fit more seamlessly with an exciting grant program, or to constantly be trying to innovate, to have something brand new to showcase to a funder. But systems change work isn’t always about creating something new–it’s about getting the systems we have  to benefit the entire community. And funders need to understand that making those changes takes consistent support and investment over the long-term, not just a new program. Design your initiatives and work around the community, and stay grounded in that.

Shift your language from fundraising to advancement.  In fundraising, the goal is usually a dollar amount, and the work focuses on that in isolation. When we talk about advancement, and bring communications, strategy, evaluation and more into the picture, the focus turns intentionally to advancing the entire vision of the organization and the systems change at the heart of the organization’s mission. The community’s needs stay at the center of the work, and fundraising has to support the mission–not on what funders want to see or hear. 

Highlight community strengths, not just needs. We know there are deep needs in the communities we serve. In fundraising, it’s easy to get drawn into focusing entirely on deficiencies and gaps in services. But there is also incredible strength and energy in our communities. At Thunder Valley, we knew we didn’t want to perpetuate the narrative of poverty, addiction, and other poor outcomes on the Pine Ridge Reservation. So instead we focused on the power within the community to create change and opportunity for all, and our focus was on getting funders excited to partner with the Pine Ridge community to make that change happen.

Slow Down. This might feel counterintuitive: those of us in the nonprofit world feel like the race is always on to bring in new funding. But it’s critical to take time to educate prospective funders. At Thunder Valley, we had to educate donors who knew very little–or had a range of misconceptions about–the Pine Ridge Reservation. It’s crucial that funders understand the community context you’re facing, to really bring them up to speed before introducing your mission and strategies. We found that, when we approached funders in that way, taking time to inform and build trust, it led to stronger relationships and to funders really serving as full partners in our work. 

When Needed, Push Back. It’s critical that leaders in philanthropy start to shift their policies and practices—and to trust that community-based organizations know what needs to happen within the communities they serve. It’s our job to push them in that direction. And that happens when we keep our message focused on the community’s needs, instead of what the funder wants to see or hear. There’s no doubt that approach can feel uncomfortable at first–because of the intense pressure we feel to raise funds. But ultimately, it’s the way we build partnerships with funders that are rooted in equity.

Shift your mindset from scarcity to one of abundance. We all know that funding can feel incredibly scarce, and that realizing our missions is going to take huge investments. But we also know that people like Jeff Bezos are trying to fly to Mars: there’s not a lack of money in the world, but simply need to be able to access it. I believe part of our role in nonprofits, or in the social sector, is pushing against that scarcity narrative. We need to consistently call attention to the fact that there are resources for this work, and call on funders to do more–and give more–to shift systems more quickly. Focus on community, not competition. In fundraising, it can feel like a constant competition to outshine every other organization. But as nonprofits, we also know the power of working together: try making that a strategy in fundraising to unlock resources together. Think about ways to partner–to work on a proposal or grant together, or approach a funder collectively around a series of community needs. That kind of collaboration strengthens our relationships, reduces competition, and produces even greater gifts.

Building deeper, more authentic partnerships with funders is worth the time and effort. Many are equally invested in systems change–they are just playing a different role in the work. Seek out and connect with champions in philanthropy who align with your vision and values, and take time to educate them on your community and your initiative’s approach. Those deeper, less transactional relationships with funders can lead to bigger investments. It’s a key to powering the long term systems change we all want to see in the world.