Every day for the past three years in my work at the Campaign for Southern Equality, I’ve spoken with grassroots organizers who have exciting ideas about how to transform their communities into fairer, more equitable places. But again and again and again, they face a key obstacle to advancing change: Money to fund essential advocacy work.
Grassroots organizers face myriad barriers to winning grants — especially when they’re small groups or are just trying to get things off the ground. Many foundations have specific and prescriptive requirements that force nonprofits to do what the grant maker wants — instead of funding the idea behind the project. Organizers can quickly become swamped with lengthy applications, time-consuming grant reports, and centralized funding. Sometimes the challenge in applying for a grant is as basic as the lack of access to a computer or quality internet access — or an application that expects all grant seekers to be proficient English speakers and writers.
We’ve heard about these challenges too many times at the Campaign for Southern Equality. We examine challenges facing LGBTQ Southerners — including oppressive legislation and lack of access to quality health care — through a commitment to equity in race, gender, and class.
That’s why we’re especially proud of our Southern Equality Fund, which supports and trains Southern LGBTQ people doing organizing in their hometowns. We know that organizers on the front lines can transform our region — but they need the funding and support to do so. Through the Southern Equality Fund, we’ve given more than $170,000 to more than 250 grassroots projects from Southern organizers since 2015. In 2018 alone, we delivered 125 grants that totaled more than $74,000.
Through our grants, which provide $500 apiece, we’ve funded a wide variety of efforts, including queer- and trans-centered sailing classes in New Orleans, the first LGBTQ Pride event in a small town in Northern Alabama, and a legal clinic in Piedmont, S.C., that helps trans people change their names.
We know it’s possible to build a grant-making model that makes a tremendous impact without imposing unnecessary headaches on busy organizers. Here’s what we’ve learned that can help other grant makers make a difference:
Empower young organizations to build. We give priority to groups and individual leaders who have trouble getting grants because they don’t yet have legal charity status or are based in a rural area. Unlike at most foundations, nonprofits with small budgets are encouraged to apply: Only organizations with budgets of $50,000 or less are eligible. Many of our organizers have never received a grant — and some have never even applied before.
A little goes a long way. We want to be a catalyst for strong organizing — the fire starter that supports the beginning of something great. It’s why we cap grants at $500. So many grassroots organizers have full-time jobs and are trying to do good work in their communities. In our experience, that work sometimes doesn’t take a lot of money. Sometimes organizers just need a small amount to rent a meeting space or pay for printing costs or buy food to sustain volunteers. A few hundred dollars shouldn’t be a barrier to doing something great, like pulling off a grassroots action, holding a teach-in, or building community in a small town.
Make the application accessible. We’ve intentionally streamlined our forms to be shorter and limited to the essentials: Organizers should be putting their energy into caring for themselves and their communities, not into paperwork. We’ve also expanded our grant request process to phone, video, and mail-in submission options, in addition to our standard online application. And all of these are available in both English and Spanish.
Recognize that people don’t fall into just one category. LGBTQ people come from every race and class. They live in rural, urban, and suburban locales, and many were born outside the United States. They have different spiritual beliefs and physical abilities. That’s why we focus on providing funding for a broad range of projects. We also know that the challenges facing some LGBTQ people are especially difficult so we make a point to channel money to trans and gender variant people of color, as well as to people who live in rural areas.
Respond to applications fast. The Southern Equality Fund takes applications on a rolling basis, and we typically notify grantees around two weeks from the date of an application’s submission. We understand that organizers’ desire to build political power, agency, and equality in the South is ongoing and ever-changing, so we prioritize quicker turnaround time in getting checks out the door and keep the fund open year-round.
Support organizers with additional training. We understand that funding alone is often not enough to sustain grassroots LGBTQ leaders and amplify the impact of their work. They also need a continuous flow of resources, including relationships with peer organizers, individualized coaching, and training. We don’t loom over grantees, but we also don’t leave them hanging with simply a check. We support and coach them throughout whenever they seek us out and whenever it’s convenient for them.
Practice organizational tithing. Our organizers’ fund grew out of a commitment we made to following the faith-based practice of giving away 10 percent of your wealth to support good works and acts of mercy. In 2019, we’re inviting other organizations like ours to make “tithing” commitments, which we see as both an immediate and long-term strategy for directing resources to every corner of the LGBTQ South. Just think about the amazing change we could create across the country if every nonprofit organization gave away 10 percent of its budget a year to support grassroots organizers working at a hyperlocal level.
The reality is that great work is already happening — but the low visibility obscures the resilient, powerful LGBTQ grassroots movement that’s thriving right now across the South. It’s time that we put our money where it’s most needed, break down unnecessary funding barriers, and invest in the next generation of grassroots organizers. Together, we can create amazing change.
Britney Nesbit is the coordinator of the Southern Equality Fund, a program of the Campaign for Southern Equality.
