Major donors; they’re white, over 60 and male right? Wrong!
I’ve been on, I am on, a journey. I’ve become consciously aware of my white privilege since #Blacklivesmatter and how it’s helped me get to where I am. I’m consistently reading, listening and learning, for my own anti-racism journey, and also to understand the dynamic of philanthropy where (often) white, wealthy men can wield incredible power through their giving priorities. I’ve been weaving this into Summit’s work, encouraging charities to take action.
Here are 5 perspectives on what charities and fundraisers can do, must do, if we are to succeed with philanthropy now and in the future.
“Most times, the way isn’t clear, but you want to start anyway. It is in starting with the first step that other steps become clearer.”
Martin Luther King
- Learn more about different philanthropy and different cultures
I’ve seen Una Osili, Director of Research at Indiana University’s Centre of Philanthropy speak about broadening our definitions of who a philanthropist is. Her research shows that in the US, the % of high-net-worth households who give is equal, regardless of race. Different cultures across the world have different philanthropic traditions.
Yet so many teams in non-profits are focusing on white, often male donors. Is this because, with mainly white fundraising teams, we are staying comfortable and reinforcing this lack of diversity with who we approach for major gifts amongst an often stale donor and homogenous donor pool?
How can we learn about different philanthropic cultures? You don’t need to look far. There are some brilliant events and specialists. For example, I was joined by Naaem Raza at a Summit Power Hour; he’s a brilliant specialist on Islamic giving.
Just posing the question internally to colleagues, to your manager, to the board “why don’t we have more major donors of colour?” can be a great first step.
2.Take steps to get more diverse donors
I’ve heard David Howse speak about charities and non-profits should be spending time in different communities they’re not already engaged with, learning the needs of that community. Is your CEO only going to events with the same leaders? What groups and communities are your charity’s community fundraiser’s engaging with? Be open and honest if experiences, cultures and communities are new to you – as above you’re learning, and that’s ok.
Barnardos’ (a key UK children’s charity) set up a BAME engagement committee to better understand and build relationships with different communities of colour.
Because if you’re not present, involved and caring about different communities, you are likely making giving to your organisation unattractive for donors of colour.
Even if you’re a UK based charity, there will be potential donors from all backgrounds and races, who care about the same thing that your charity does. Don’t exclude them.
3. Have those difficult conversations
Tell your major donors, your Patrons and your charity’s contacts about your anti-racism work. Go public with it. When Barnardos put out their white privilege statement they spoke to their major donors about it.
It may not be a difficult conversation, it may be. But the conversation needs to be had with your donors nonetheless.
As a fundraiser you need to be equipped to have those conversations. Get support from your manager if you need it to challenge any negativity or debate from high-value donors. It might not be easy – I know what it’s like to be in a room with a powerful white major donor vehemently disagreeing with me! But you also might realise that the donor isn’t the right fit with the values of your charity.
“We need to accept and work with the fact that things are complicated, and multiple seemingly-conflicting things can be true at the same time. We can respect and appreciate donors AND push back when they’re being racist or egotistical.” Spot on Vu Le, from this blog.
Ensure you have a Donor Code of Conduct to hold donors to account for their behaviour, and empower fundraisers if they experience racism, homophobia, or sexism. The Institute of Fundraising are showcasing best practice donor code of conducts from the end of 2025.
When writing proposals to your donors and funders, are you highlighting that your charity is on an anti-racism journey, and is this included in your organisation’s values? Mackenzie Scott, Jeff Bezo’s wife who gave £10billion during the pandemic to frontline covid causes, deliberately sought out charities tackling racial justice. We should see this as the essential that it is, and not a side project.
Ask what your major donors’ businesses are doing about anti-racism and diversity? You may get some ideas to take back to your charity. If they’re US led and diversity programmes have been cut, you can disagree with this. And one idea I love from Community Centric fundraising is to invite your major donors on your organisation’s anti-racism training.
4. Start internally
If you’re thinking to yourself, “What anti-racism and diversity work?” we hit a fundamental block.
If there isn’t any anti-racism work and efforts to create a more diverse culture in your organisation, why the heck not?
Why would donors of colour want to support you when you’ve got an all white board of trustees? Denitra Griffin, CEO, Always Giving Back Foundation speak on how donors are getting more sophisticated – a diverse board is a small signal you’re taking diversity seriously.
And if your fundraising team is white? I’m not proud of at one point having managed a team of 20 fundraisers in my career, 19 of who were white. I wanted it to change but didn’t do anything practical to make this happen. Take active steps in your recruitment to make your team more diverse. This guide from fundraising specialist Dana Segal gives top tips on this. It’s the right thing to do to become more inclusive, but it will diversify not only your team but your major donors.
5. Let’s get out of our bubble
As a white person, one small step I’ve been able to take is to actively follow more people of colour on social media doing amazing work in this space, like Martha Awojobi who is fearlessly leading on anti-racism in the sector with many others. Take the time and funds available to attend conferences on this, and to read more about different giving– I’ve got a lot more to do but we all need to be on the journey.
There is no one simple answer to the challenges of philanthropy, white privilege and major gifts. There are fortunately many organisations publicly discussing this, sharing their journeys, best practice and experiences in a low-cost way. We can all make the time, and our charities the budgets, for this.
And you can’t afford not to if you want to have a philanthropy and major donor programme fit for the next decade.
If your organisation has made changes to make its fundraising team and donor base more diverse, I’d love to hear from you to help inspire and encourage change across the sector. Please share your thoughts with me at louise@summitfundraising.co.uk
