Giving Compass' Take:

• Indigenous organizer and tribal attorney, Tara Houska, and two social justice funders, Edgar Villanueva and Jason Franklin, discuss funding Indigenous resistance, activism, and organizing.

• According to Native Americans In Philanthropy, only 0.4 percent of total annual foundation funding goes to Native and Indigenous communities. What are the reasons for this significant gap? Why aren't more funders lending capital to these communities and their activism? 

• Read more on how foundations can better support Indigenous peoples. 

Indigenous organizers are at the forefront of revolutionary movements for sovereignty, environmental justice and land rights, movements that confront our largely ignored history of Native genocide and broken treaty promises. Yet, foundations, many who claim to support marginalized and underrepresented communities, spend just 0.4% of their annual funding on Native communities. Native causes are overlooked and underfunded by philanthropy.

In this podcast, we hear from Indigenous organizer and tribal attorney, Tara Houska, and two social justice funders, Edgar Villanueva and Jason Franklin. We explore the tensions that arise when Indigenous activists seek grants to support their radical work and encounter funders that are hesitant to fund direct action, largely uneducated about Indigenous history, disconnected from struggles at the frontline, and financially linked to the industries that profit on the devastation of Native lands.

Listen to the full podcast about funding indigenous resistance at Philanthropy and Social Networks.