Since the advent of the COVID pandemic, Movement Matters has been helping to lead an exciting body of work with a funders’ consortium in Maryland, Virginia, and the District to transform how they approach philanthropic work. Historically, this collaborative has supported advocacy and research around workforce solutions designed to connect residents to better jobs as a means out of poverty. However, the pandemic created an opening to more fully explore underlying assumptions about the workforce system, to transform the focus from job access to economic justice, and to more thoroughly examine how societal and philanthropic power dynamics reinforce racialized and gendered poverty. The project, in partnership with the Greater Washington Community Foundation, began with the development of a participatory action research (PAR) project in which Movement Matters engaged several grassroots partners in exploring the issue of economic security. The findings highlighted the notion that: 1) jobs only got folks so far, and 2) more reliable income support (e.g. COVID economic measures, universal basic income) was necessary to achieve any level of security, even for those working multiple jobs. In addition, the project called attention to the depth of community networks that enable people to survive poverty and poverty level employment. With these collective findings at hand, the Community Foundation is now engaging a broader array of community partners to identify a guiding set of economic justice priorities for the region. As a parallel part of this process, Movement Matters is engaging approximately 20 local funders in the Reimagine cohort. Our charge is to explore underlying power dynamics that contribute to economic insecurity and racial injustice (including those within the philanthropic sector) and reimagine how funders can support work that transforms our economic structures. Our first meetings have created a space for strong personal and organizational exploration of these themes. The Reimagine cohort will integrate the economic justice vision and principles that emerge from the community-side process. Centering these perspectives is critical to both point funders in the right direction about what to fund and to practice new power dynamics that put community knowledge in the driver’s seat. While there is not a formal commitment that these principles will guide philanthropic giving, we are setting the stage for a shift towards funding that is more focused on structural economic change. Throughout this process, we are committed to deeply exploring the way that philanthropic institutions often replicate white supremacist structures, while simultaneously creating a space for those employed within philanthropy to examine their own biases, behaviors, and values. This combination of individual and organizational, personal and professional, is building a transformative cohort that is learning together and will continue to support each other in changing both what kind of work gets supported and how philanthropy supports it in more equitable ways. Connect with us for more information on MM's Funder Training and Technical Assistance. Movement Matters is based in Washington, DC. We work regionally and with national partners. Comments are closed.
|
AuthorsMOVEMENT MATTERS Archives
October 2024
Categories
All
|