Social Justice Philanthropy Then...
Social justice philanthropy is not just a modern concept. Social injustice has always been prevalent and the desire of some individuals to end this injustice has always been found in society. By looking into social justice nonprofits of the past and how philanthropy was able to foster more social justice, we might be able to find an answer for our future. To think the past, present, and future are entirely separate parts of history is the reason the social injustices fought in the Suffrage and Civil Rights Movements still exist today, just in different forms. Here we take a comprehensive look at two of the most prominent social justice movements in our American history in hopes to better understand the depth of our issues today.
Suffrage Movement
The success of granting the women the right to vote can be found much in the work of the National American Woman Suffrage Association (NAWSA) and the National Woman’s Party (NWP), which were both largely funded by the generosity of women philanthropists. The NAWSA’s publicity efforts were made possible by Mrs. Frank Leslie, a woman philanthropist. It is through this gift and publicity that allowed for the Suffrage Movement to gain momentum and grasp the attention of the American people. It helped transition the method towards suffrage from state-by-state, to a more universal and centralized approach. In the book Funding Feminism: Monied Women, Philanthropy, and the Women’s Movement, 1870–1967 by Joan Johnson, the importance of philanthropy in the Suffrage Movement was brought even more to life. Katharine Dexter McCormick gave millions of dollars towards the movement and helped advance the mission towards women's suffrage and increased women's rights. Without her large donation, the progress made would have been thwarted and the movement would not have been able to get past the issues that plagued them.The problem, however, that arose from the Suffrage Movement was the power struggle that began to develop from individuals and women part of the movement. Those that donated the most money thought they should have a say in how the movement was conducted, but these ideas often opposed one another and the general consensus. This divisiveness over how to achieve the results they sought began to fracture the Suffrage Movement. While they did end up being successful through continued support and philanthropic donations, this progress was slowed greatly by the fragmentation amongst the individuals of the movement. Through the Suffrage Movement, individuals began to realize the importance of philanthropy in order to realize the goals set in place. There was a clear need for leaders that did not buy their position through their donations, but ones that had a vision and desire to achieve the goals of the group.
Below is a video further explaining the history of the Suffrage Movement and the path towards the 19th Amendment. This was made possible through efforts of philanthropy and the donations that allowed for events like the Senneca Falls Convention to occur.
Civil Rights Movement
Having learned from the Suffrage Movement, much of the quick success and attention brought to the Civil Rights Movement was because of a clear goal that individuals set out to achieve. There was not as large of a fracture between the movement, as they knew that they needed to have a clear objective and follow strong leaders to render results. This is why we saw some of the most notable and strong leaders arise during the Civil Rights Movement, such as Martin Luther King, Jr. The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, NAACP, was one of the first groups that worked towards achieving equality for African Americans and trying to erradicate Jim Crow Laws. This group was instrumental in the court case and decision of Brown v Board of Education, which opened the first integrated school. Because of this, high profile marches, sit-ins and boycotts were started and attention began to be gained for the movement, with President John F. Kennedy endorsing the movement as well. While this helped the Civil RIghts Movement gain more momentum, the challenge that arose was that the movement lacked funding in order to make the changes necessary. So while the March of Washington captured the media and world's attention, the the finances to implement change continued to lack.
Philanthropy ended up being crucial in the continuing of the movement and granting African Americans the right to vote. Philanthropic dollars helped created the Voter Education Project (VEP), a group of activists that would meet in order to develop a plan towards Adrican American Suffrage. They did this by taking the philanthropic donations and giving them to grassroots activists in the south that would then register individuals to vote. With millions of philanthropic dollars, the VEP was able to provide transportation for African Americans across the south to register to vote and eradicate the Jim Crow Laws, as well as pay for any other cost that might have been associated, including babysitting and food. The VEP was the most successful organization in the Civil Rights Movement and it was due to the money that they were able to raise. Prior to the organization, there was attention to the cause and a clear need for change but there were no funds to make these changes happen. Without philanthropy, the Civil RIghts Movement would not have been able to achieve results.
Below is a video explaining a little bit more about the Civil RIghts Movement and the path towards achieving equality for African Americans in the 50's and 60's. Without philanthropy, the mission of the Civil Rights Movement would have only been a social change; a political change was also needed. Because of philanthropy, activists received the funding they needed in order to change the power balance and structure of the south and America in its entirety.
There is much that can be said for history and taking what we gathered and found in the past. By looking at the Suffrage and Civil RIghts Movement, it becomes clear that social justice cannot be fully obtained without philanthropy. While these movements were able to initially gain speed and momentum without any funding, the changes these brought were only in the minds of individuals. To make concrete and noticeable change, change that would restructure our government, it took wealthy individuals and organizations that wanted to make a difference to step forward. Fighting social injustice, now and then, requires a collective and joint approach: activism and funding,
