Nonprofits and the Trump Agenda

Vera’s experience is a ‘harbinger’ for the rest of the nonprofit world, says Nicholas Turner, president of the criminal-justice reform organization.

The law permits most colleges and universities to increase spending from their endowments in light of financial pressures, the author argues.

When a progressive group posted in support of Palestinians in Gaza, it saw funding evaporate. Similar fissures are reverberating across the nonprofit world.

Attorneys who specialize in nonprofit law and freedom of speech weigh in the president’s battle with the university.

Advocacy groups are the latest targets of the Trump administration, which is seeking to limit the independence of various civil society organizations — or put them at risk of losing their federal funds and professional livelihood.

Funding shortfalls and the growing public perception that Spanish-speaking people are “potential invaders and potential criminals” are putting Latino organizations in crisis mode, said Frankie Miranda, president of Hispanic Federation.

Grant makers must rally to challenge disregard for rule of law because it affects virtually every issue that philanthropy works to advance.

President Trump’s shifting approach to tariffs is adding new headaches for nonprofits already grappling with chaos related to executive orders from his administration.

After Edward Blum’s complaint to the IRS about the Gates Foundation’s “illegal” scholarship program for students of color, the Seattle philanthropy giant said it would change the scholarship’s eligibility criteria to include all races.

Trust-based funders are taking a stance to shore up nonprofits defunded by the Trump administration, although 10 of them declined to identify themselves publicly. Separately, a group of foundations offered a ‘statement of solidarity’ in response to the federal cuts.

As federal budget cuts ripple through an economy in which nonprofits already were struggling, the Chronicle of Philanthropy is assembling a monthly estimate of nonprofit job losses by sector.

Fighting Trump administration policies requires grit and sacrifice more typical of college athletes than social justice warriors. Booker showed how it’s done.

Some emergency funds are ramping up and others are winding down as we near the first 100 days of Trump administration cutbacks on federal funds for nonprofits.

There’s good news and bad, according to analyses of how donors responded to the four most recent economic downturns.

The far right has spent millions peddling its anti-immigrant narrative. Philanthropy can help tell a more powerful story about immigrants’ value to the nation.

The president’s moves highlight fundamental questions about the role of the U.S. government in the nation’s artistic life.

Nonprofit workers stressed by the uncertainty their groups face should acknowledge their emotions, set limits around work, and find purpose beyond their jobs, experts advise.

Some fundraisers are unhappy with the organization’s response and are pushing for ways to participate virtually.

Progressives have criticized the orders for being vague and attacking a concept — DEI — that does not have an agreed-upon legal definition. Conservatives argue that race-based grant making amounts to illegal discrimination.

Claire Dunning, author of “Nonprofit Neighborhoods: An Urban History of Inequality and the American State” talks about how the 1964 war on poverty expanded federal grants to nonprofits to provide social services in low-income communities and how Trump appears to be dismantling that strategy.

Philanthropy should invest big in projects that give more Americans a voice in policy decisions that affect their lives.

In response to recent op-ed, reader argues that nonprofits should stay in their lane and out of politics.

In the battle to influence public opinion, democracy funders have fallen behind. Here’s how to change that.

Progressive foundations have been largely silent in response to Trump administration policies that affect many of the nation’s nonprofits. But some insiders say a response is coming.

Organizations struggle to plan amid uncertainty about federal funds. As a result, some are crafting multiple spending plans.

The PhD Project aims to help diversify the business world and higher education faculty.

We foundation leaders have long been insulated from threats. It’s time to shed our chicken feathers.

In reaction, targeted nonprofits are developing ‘subpoena playbooks’ and new cybersecurity strategies.

Forty-five of those inquiries are focused on colleges’ partnerships with the PhD Project, a nonprofit that helps students from underrepresented groups get degrees in business with the goal of diversifying the business world.

The nonprofits featured in a recent article need to stop acting shocked and start getting to work.

After cuts in federal spending, charities are making carefully worded appeals to donors to continue critical programs.

A few nonprofits are taking aggressive stances toward the Trump administration’s attempts to cancel funding, while others are using more of a discreet, wait-and-see approach.

The action, which could target those working in immigration and other areas, drew quick backlash, and is almost certain to face legal challenges.

As federal climate policy is dismantled, grant makers need to end their silence and get to work.

Data-driven analysis draws criticism and praise.

Nearly 70 percent of nonprofit leaders say Trump’s policies have hurt their organizations’ work, and data shows much of the sector would collapse if federal funding were discontinued.

Philanthropy experts see Trump’s approach to the nonprofit sector as unprecedented for its lack of plan and philosophy as well as sweeping and questionably legal implementation.

The president’s order for investigations of diversity, equity, and inclusion programs target philanthropies that hold $900 billion in assets and account for roughly 55 percent of all grant dollars awarded.

As the U.S. funding freeze cascades through the international-development ecosystem, nonprofits are fundraising to help organizations struggling with the cuts.

For inspiration, they should consider the successful example of Hillsdale College, which cut the federal funding cord four decades ago.

The move was prompted by the Trump administration’s freeze on federal foreign aid and the now-suspended freeze on federal grants.

Foundations’ inaction under Trump, as detailed in a recent article, will only hurt the marginalized people they serve.

Except for Mark Zuckerberg and Priscilla Chan’s CZI Initiative, most big grant makers have not closed their diversity, equity, and inclusion programs.

A recent op-ed was right that there’s no replacing government aid — but this solution can help.

“I think everybody has to start looking at language,” says the daughter of Martin Luther King Jr. “It doesn’t mean you have to go do away with your core mission, but you’re going to have to wordsmith to get through this season.”

On the third anniversary of the Russian invasion, Ukrainian nonprofits are facing yet another test of endurance.

The future of nonprofits is likely to be determined by Congress, not the judiciary. But can nonprofits effectively lobby conservative lawmakers about their worth?

The flood-the-zone strategy coming from the White House has had a chilling effect on nonprofits, according to a new survey from the Communications Network.

The Climate Justice Alliance was among 11 organizations chosen by the EPA to distribute $600 million to nonprofits. It was the first to be completely defunded.

The Chronicle of Philanthropy wants to hear from you. Plus, a primer on Trump administration executive orders and actions affecting the nonprofit sector.

Jane Addams showed how the seeds of social change can be planted at the local level even as the wealthy gain power and economic inequality grows.

Groups are shying from lobbying and policy work, fearing donor blow back and government retribution, a survey finds.

The memo has already drawn opposition and concerns about potential First Amendment conflicts.

In a post-aid world, philanthropy can be a potent bulwark against authoritarianism and a powerful voice for human rights around the world.

Grant makers need to reassure nonprofits that they have their backs during these tumultuous times.

Most large private foundations have been slow to respond to the Trump administration’s policy changes affecting nonprofits. Bloomberg Philanthropies is the one exception.

More than a dozen federal lawsuits have already been filed against President Trump and his administration by a wide range of nonprofits.

It will be especially important for nonprofits that rely on federal grants to communicate with their donors, fundraising experts say.

A federal judge extended a block on Trump’s rescinded federal funding freeze, but some nonprofit leaders think the fight to keep federal payments has just begun.

A coalition of nonprofits declared that a Trump administration freeze on federal payments would have “catastrophic consequences” for charities that rely on government support.

While Trump criticized DEI in his first administration, his recent executive order targets for-profit and nonprofit government contractors, universities with large endowments, and foundations with assets north of $500 million.

Coalitions that aim to counter what they see as the President’s authoritarianism are overlooking key potential partners: faith-driven Trump supporters.

Trivial lawsuits and endless audits can quickly hinder nonprofits’ ability to operate. Foundations should ready their defenses.

While widely seen as a threat to civil society, HR 9495 actually gives nonprofits more power to fight back than the existing law.

Trump’s first term triggered a wave of immigration grant making. Where the money will go this time is starting to take shape.

Lessons learned in 2020 can serve the field well as it faces another period of uncertainty and upheaval, writes Lisa Pilar Cowan in the first in a series of dispatches on Trump’s initial 100 days in office.

As companies and universities back away from DEI policies, grant makers that focus on racial equity are bracing for litigation.

Expect donors and organizations to be attacked by name, harassed and threatened online, and investigated on questionable grounds, says the author. Here’s how groups can defend themselves.

Republican lawmakers are committed to nonprofit reform in 2025. That could spell challenges for the field.

A new incentive for giving is one bright spot on a congressional slate filled with peril for philanthropy.

Billions spent fighting Trumpian populism hasn’t worked. Practicing a pluralistic approach to grant making will.

Despite opposition from a wide range of nonprofits, lawmakers in the U.S. House passed a bill designed to give the Treasury Department unilateral authority to strip the tax-exempt status of nonprofits it claims support terrorism.

To counter attacks from the Trump administration, philanthropy should adopt Walker’s pluralism playbook.