Trust-Based Philanthropy Begins With Confronting Systemic Power Imbalances

Leaders in philanthropy have stepped up and spoken out about the many ways philanthropy has upheld and reinforced systemic racism and white supremacist culture. For many in the sector, this is a tough pill to swallow, but it is necessary medicine if we truly want to achieve a vision of a more equitable, sustainable, and democratic society. 

There are visionary leaders among us who have called for necessary reflection and change in the sector, among them Sidney Hargro, Marcus Walton, and Crystal Hayling. Meanwhile, there are difficult but necessary conversations happening in boardrooms and Zoom rooms, as organizations grapple with questions around representation, power, and what to do next.

While there are no easy answers or quick fixes, the first step is to confront the reality that philanthropy has often contributed to systemic inequities, both in the ways wealth is accumulated and in the ways its dissemination is controlled. Trust-based philanthropy seeks to alleviate these systemic power imbalances by challenging the “prove it to earn it” mentality of traditional philanthropy, of which BIPOC-led organizations often bear the brunt. When you have a sector that is 83% white, built upon white-dominant frames of what deems an organization “good” or “trustworthy,” it is impossible to deny the inherent inequities.

There are three thoughts I’d like to offer as tools for reflection and action in this current moment:

1) Philanthropy has a systemic racism problem. This is obvious to many, news to some, and overall something we in the sector need to confront and disrupt. Let’s look at the data. Today, less than 2% of major foundation dollars goes to Black-led organizations. Meanwhile, white-led nonprofits have budgets that are 24% higher than those led by people of color. And nonprofit executive directors of color report a significantly higher burnout rate than their white counterparts. 

This is just a sampling of data, but clearly there’s a lot of work to do. This moment demands all of us to commit, unflinchingly, to addressing these disparities. In many ways, this starts with confronting our own biases and assumptions. 

2) Trust-based philanthropy can only work if we check our own biases around “trust.” Fundamentally, a trust-based approach encourages us to challenge our assumptions of what makes an organization “trustworthy” and what types of leaders are the “right ones” to support. Even our sector’s most progressive foundations have extractive histories that have shaped philanthropy’s narratives about who is trusted and who is seen as “risky. ”

Let’s face it: It is inherently more comfortable to build a relationship with someone who you have more in common with than less. The rigor of a trust-based approach to philanthropy is in recognizing this tendency, pushing past perceived differences, and building relationships rooted in shared values toward advancing a collective vision for change. As Robert Sterling Clark Foundation’s Phil Li often says, this work is not about trust for likability, but rather “trust for action.”

3) The good news is that, just as philanthropy has played a role in reinforcing these inequities, so too can it help create a more equitable future. We can start by checking our own egos and assumptions, and examining how bias is showing up in our own decision-making processes. Ask yourself, how would my grantmaking practices look differently if they centered around equity? What types of organizations and leaders are being left out of the equation as a result of my foundation’s application and outreach processes? Who has informed our overall strategies and approach, and what other voices should we include moving forward? For a sector with billions of dollars in assets, and little regulation beyond the 5% payout requirement -- there is lots of room to do things better, differently, and in a trust-based way.  

I’ll share one last thought from a recent presentation at the Philanthropy Network of Philadelphia’s annual member meeting. We concluded the discussion with each panelist offering 10-word recommendations for funders who want to embrace a trust-based approach right now. Shanell Ransom from the Samuel S. Fels Fund offered a clear and powerful next step: “Trust and fund Black, Indigenous and people of color-led organizations.” 

Imagining this future for philanthropy is not hard to do, but turning it into a reality requires all of us to lead with trust.