Most foundations say they are paying more attention to issues of racial justice and social equity now than before the Covid-19 pandemic, although not all groups of people benefit equally, according to a new survey.
Ninety percent of foundations said they are undertaking new efforts to support charities that serve communities that have been severely affected by the pandemic, according to the report from the Center for Effective Philanthropy. More specifically, 75 percent of foundations reported new efforts aimed at Black communities, and 63 percent were extending new support to Hispanic communities.
However, only 47 percent reported making new efforts to support charities that serve undocumented immigrants, a group that was unable to directly benefit from the pandemic stimulus checks sent out early in the outbreak. Even fewer — 25 percent — reported they were undertaking new efforts to support charities that serve Native American communities.
There is awareness among foundations of how much work they still need to undertake in order to really, deeply do the work of contributing to racial equity.
The report explores how foundations are responding to racism and the inequities underscored by the pandemic. It is the second in a three-part report series, with conclusions framed against the Council on Foundation’s Call to Action pledge, which outlined eight areas in which foundations can do more to serve their grantees during the pandemic, including loosening grant restrictions, reducing grant reporting requirements, and supporting charities’ policy activism in areas touched by the pandemic such as health care, civic participation, and rental assistance. A third report in the series, focusing on flexibility in grant making, will be released next week.
The report includes response data collected in August from 236 foundations, including 66 groups that had not signed the pledge.
The pledge called on signatories to support underfunded organizations created or led by people most affected by the pandemic, such as racial and ethnic minorities, people with disabilities, and the poor. Nearly 70 percent of foundations in the survey said they were already doing that before the pandemic, and 59 percent said they are giving a higher percentage of grant dollars to charities created or led by CEOs from those groups since the pandemic began. However, most foundations still reported less than 25 percent of their grant making allocated to minority groups.
“There is awareness among foundations of how much work they still need to undertake in order to really, deeply do the work of contributing to racial equity,” said Ellie Buteau vice president for research for the Center for Effective Philanthropy.
Ryan Schlegel, research director with the National Committee for Responsive Philanthropy, was guardedly optimistic about the results of the survey. He noted the survey relied on self-reporting from a relatively small respondent pool and said it remains to be seen to what extent these changes are taking place among America’s nearly 90,000 foundations.
“There’s always a gulf between how foundations perceive their work and the reality of their grant making on the ground, according to grantees and the communities they serve,” said Schlegel in an email. “That’s simply the nature of the current power imbalance and lack of democratic accountability inherent in much of philanthropy.”
