In the wake of the civil unrest that swept through Los Angeles in 1992 and shook the city to its core, Black, Latinx, Asian, and white community organizers were rushing from one meeting to the next to discuss how to channel the rage about racist policing, income inequality, and neighborhood neglect that had precipitated the violence and turmoil. There was much talk about what should be done right away. But in one of the meetings, in the midst of a sense of urgency and rush of ideas for rapid responses, one activist leaned back and commented: “There is an urgent need to think long-term.”

In the decades that followed, those words had impact: Community organizers in Los Angeles focused on the long-term projects of protecting immigrant rights, securing community benefits agreements, and increasing residents’ engagement in electoral politics. Los Angeles City now boasts a Black mayor, Karen Bass, who emerged from the 1990s organizing milieu. Their success in transforming L.A.’s governance can be attributed to combining impatience about injustice with patience about strategy—and all the while keeping a relentless focus on securing voice and power for marginalized communities.

Philanthropy would do well to follow a similar strategy. The forces of oppression that pushed people into the streets in L.A. in 1992—systemic inequality, structural racism, unequally distributed vulnerabilities, and governance failures—are as strong today and as widespread as ever. To confront those forces, blunt their impact, and make a real difference in the lives of people in marginalized groups and communities, the philanthropic community must act not only boldly but thoughtfully, by looking past short-term fixes and the issue du jour to the long-run work of building community power.

We recommend that in the coming years foundations put the power of their significant resources behind three themes, each with a different kind of transformative potential.

  • Build Governing Power
  • Tell the Truth About the Root Causes of Inequity
  • Support Grassroots Groups That Do the Work

Read the full article about power-building by Jennifer Ito, Manuel Pastor and Ashley K. Thomas at Stanford Social Innovation Review.