Giving Compass' Take:

• Author Vu Le provides the varied ways that majority white nonprofit organizations can effectively collaborate and support organizations that are led by communities of color. 

• Why is it important to note the privilege and power structures present in funding patterns of foundations? 

• Read about examples of a family foundation taking time to address racial justice. 

Despite the pervasiveness of the Nonprofit Hunger Games, we nonprofits are way more effective when we work together. However, partnerships can be challenging when there are clearly differences in culture, resources, and power. As someone who works with a lot of leaders and communities of color, I often get asked by thoughtful colleagues who work at majority-white nonprofits how they can support and work with organizations that are led by communities of color without causing inconvenience, or annoyance, or actual harm to those communities.

So here is some general advice, divided into four categories.

  1. Increase your knowledge and self-awareness:
    1. Get a grounding on the org and its cultural context
    2. Read up and attend trainings on race, equity, diversity, inclusion.
    3. Check your underlying assumptions.
    4. Listen to what partners want and need.
    5. Be on the ground, out in the community.
  2. Provide resources, don’t ask people to do stuff for free:
    1. Build it into the budget
    2. Buy a table at partners’ events.
    3. Have events out in the community.
    4. Hire local POC-owned vendors for your events.
    5. Provide payment to orgs when asking people to be on committees.
    6. Pay keynote speakers and panelists.
    7. Pay for interpreters and translators.
  3. Use your privilege to help partner orgs fulfill their missions:
    1. Introduce communities-of-color-led orgs to your donors, funders, and volunteers.
    2. Highlight the work of communities-of-color-led orgs.
    3. Speak up on issues that affect partner organizations and the communities they serve.
  4. Know when to step back:
    1. Be OK with not attending some meetings and events.
    2. Recognize when you should NOT speak in meetings
    3. Turn down some funding opportunities.
    4. Volunteer to do the “boring” stuff.

And finally, get over your guilt, and use your privilege for good.

Read the full article about nonprofits by Vu Le at Nonprofit AF