Feminist Philanthropy Archives

WFN to Prez Candidates: Speak Now for Women and Girls

Women’s funders demand presidential candidates go on the record on issues affecting women and girls in final debate

SAN FRANCISCO — This week’s second and final presidential debate, scheduled for Oct. 22, 2020, is the last chance to question the candidates side-by-side about the issues most important to women and girls — especially women and girls of color. Women’s Funding Network issued an open letter, signed by prominent women’s funders, to the debate’s moderator to demand that the candidates answer a range of questions to give voters the information they need about how each candidate plans to achieve equality and justice for all women and girls.

Full text of the letter:

#SayHerName: What Feminist Givers Can Do For Breonna Taylor

On March 13th, the Louisville Metro Police executed a “no knock” warrant at the Kentucky home of Breonna Taylor and her boyfriend, Kenneth Walker. The exact events of the night have been hotly contested in and out of court, but the end result was that a young woman with a bright future lost her life, and the police who perpetrated the killing did not seem to be held accountable in any way.

**Image Credit:** Todd Heisler / The New York Times

In the months that followed, protests surrounding Breonna’s death and the deaths of women of color at the hands of police officers have rocked the country, even amidst the most serious pandemic of our time. Bolstered by the Black Lives Matter movement, and further aided by Kimberlé Crenshaw’s creation of the #SayHerName hashtag, Breonna’s story broke through to mainstream culture and gave America a new awareness about what racism looks like for women of color.

(Liveblog) Empowering Gender Equality with ERA Coalition

On Wednesday, September 30th, the ERA Coalition held a special “Meet the Chairs” event to raise awareness and funds in support of the Equal Rights Amendment. Founded in 2014, the ERA Coalition works to further along the process involved in ratifying the Equal Rights Amendment, newly focusing its efforts on Black and Indigenous women and women of color, as well as gender-nonconforming people and transgender women and girls.

On September 30, newly established Chairs of the ERA Coalition S. Mona Sinha and Kimberly Peeler-Allen joined Alyssa Milano and a heavy-hitting selection of speakers for a night of discussion. (**Image Credit:** ERA Coalition)

Kimberly Peeler-Allen, the new Chair of the ERA Coalition, and S. Mona Sinha, the new Chair of the Coalition’s sister organization, the Fund for Women’s Equality, spoke with Alyssa Milano on their motivations, passions, and hopes for their work with the ERA Coalition and beyond.

Sara Monteabaro’s Mission for Women & Girls with MIT Solve

Editor’s Note: This interview in our Feminist Giving IRL series features Sara Monteabaro, newly appointed Director of Strategic & Partner Programs at MIT Solve.

Sara Monteabaro is the newly appointed Director of Strategic & Partner programs at MIT Solve. (**Image Credit:** MIT Solve)

1. What do you wish you had known when you started out in your profession?

Being a perfectionist is a strength masked as a weakness. As a self-proclaimed perfectionist myself, I’ve learned over the course of my career that perfectionist tendencies—when controlled—are something to lean into. It’s a matter of striving to do one’s best, while also accepting that failures along the way are learning opportunities, not signs of weakness or inadequacy.

WMM to Philanthropy: In COVID Economy, Give Bold for Women

With an organization model built on women who pledge or donate at least $1 million of their wealth, it’s no surprise that Women Moving Millions is associated with large-scale campaigns and fundraising projects. The latest campaign from WMM, “Give Bold. Get Equal.” encourages donors and foundations to commit funds to gender equality in ways unheard of before the COVID-19 pandemic.

The end goal? Mobilize $100 million for women and girls by the year 2022.

The Women Moving Millions “Give Bold. Get Equal.” campaign seeks to mobilize $100 million in new funding for women and girls by the year 2022. (**Image Credit:** WMM Facebook)

“Women and girls need our support more than ever in this moment,” says Sarah Haacke Byrd, Executive Director of WMM. “The past decade is bookended by the Great Recession and the COVID-19 crisis. During this time, women gained 11 million jobs, and by April 2020, all these jobs were erased. The pandemic is exacerbating the systemic oppression faced by women and girls.”

Clear and Precious: RBG’s Legacy Lives On in Feminist Giving

There are many things I could write about Ruth Bader Ginsburg. I could tell you stories about my college friends chanting “Notorious RBG strikes again!” and wearing black tee shirts embroidered with lace collars. I could talk about her support for the LGBT community, people with disabilities, women and girls, and women’s right to choose. I could recite her many groundbreaking victories, not just as a Supreme Court justice but as a woman paving the way for future generations of female leaders.

RBG, the 2018 documentary by Julie Cohen and Betsy West, helped familiarize the public with the amazing life of Ruth Bader Ginsburg. (Image Credit: RBG)

As we face a world without Ruth Bader Ginsburg, and the implications of her empty seat on the Supreme Court, it’s far too easy to fall into a habit of despair and disaster omens. Instead, what’s important to remember is the legacy of RBG: a legacy of doing what is right, rather than what is easy, and standing up for what we believe in so that we give courage to others to follow our lead.

Phaidra Knight Elected President of Women’s Sports Foundation

New York, N.Y. (September 30, 2020): The Women’s Sports Foundation (WSF) announced today its president-elect and two new members joining the Board of Trustees. World Rugby Hall of Famer Phaidra Knight was voted in as president-elect, and is joined by newly-elected Board members Brett Goodman and LaChina Robinson. Knight has been serving as a WSF Trustee since 2018, and now Goodman and Robinson join the elite group of cross-sector experts that help guide the Women’s Sports Foundation’s operations as well as its mission, to unlock the possibilities in every girl and woman through the power of sport.

Phaidra Knight was voted in as president-elect of the Women’s Sports Foundation, and is joined by newly-elected board members Brett Goodman and LaChina Robinson. (Image credit: WSF)

“We are thrilled for Phaidra and excited to welcome Brett and LaChina – amazing professionals who are fellow game-changers in our fight for gender equity in sports,” said WSF CEO, Deborah Antoine. “Each brings a wonderfully diverse range of knowledge and experiences to WSF, and we look forward to working together, and advancing our mission, to unlock the potential of girls and women in sport and in life.”

WMM Summit: Vicki Saunders on Women’s Radical Generosity

During the Women Moving Millions virtual summit on Friday, September 11, SheEO Founder Vicki Saunders spoke with Resilience Educator and Entrepreneur Komal Minhas about the ways women’s radical generosity is changing the world.

Komal Minhas and Vicki Saunders discussed radical generosity and the importance of identity during the WMM Virtual Summit. (**Image Credit:** Women Moving Millions)

The session focused on the importance of “transforming the investment model”: In other words, updating the ways we invest in businesses and campaigns in order to support more women entrepreneurs. Instead of trying to squeeze female entrepreneurs into a traditional investment model that doesn’t fit, SheEO and Saunders support female entrepreneurship by creating an entirely new field of play that focuses on financing, supporting, and celebrating women business owners.

Black Leaders Call for $1 Billion Decade-Long Investment in Black Girls

On September 15, the 57th anniversary of the 1963 Birmingham, Alabama church bombing that killed four Black girls, a group of prominent Black women launched the Black Girl Freedom Fund. The group’s open letter and social media campaign mark the beginning of a one-billion-dollar effort championing Black girls and their families.

The open letter from the Black Girl Freedom Fund notes that while Black Lives Matter attracts strong philanthropic support, “Black girls and young women still remain adultified, victimized by violence, and erased from the very same social justice movement for which they continue to risk their lives.”

The letter demands that Black girls receive the attention and support they deserve:

Black Girls Dream Fund Launches with Support from WDN, Others

(Sept. 10, 2020) SOUTHERN BLACK GIRLS AND WOMEN’S CONSORTIUM LAUNCHES BLACK GIRLS DREAM FUND

The $100 million fundraising initiative will support making Black girls’ dreams a reality

Black Girls Dream Fund launches with support from Women Donors Network, Mary Reynolds Babcock Foundation, Lucy and Isadore B Adelman Foundation, Collective Future Fund, and the Momentum Fund. (Image Credit: Black Girls Dream Fund)

ATLANTA – Today, the Southern Black Girls and Women’s Consortium (SBGWC) kicked off a 10-year fundraising initiative to raise $100 million to financially empower the goals of Southern Black girls and women in the United States through the Black Girls Dream Fund. The new Fund seeks to fundraise and shift current grantmaking efforts in the South, channeling greater resources toward organizations that are intentionally supporting and empowering Black girls and women.

Category: Feminist Philanthropy