I have always been an advocate for justice. As a nearly lifelong community organizer, I have spent years navigating through grassroots organizing spaces, institutions of higher education, traditional nonprofits, foundations, and multi-stakeholder collaborations. From a young age I was fortunate to be politicized by former Black Panthers, SNCC organizers, community activists, and young peers with whom I still share a deep connection.

Still, I can remember sitting in a church in the Lower 9th Ward of New Orleans in 2008, surrounded by dozens of community residents, organizers, advocates, and movement builders, and experiencing, for the first time, my privilege being challenged as a white-passing straight man. At that moment, I realized that even though both of my mother’s parents emigrated from Mexico to the U.S. as teenage orphans and my grandfather is from Acámbaro, Guanajuato and of indigenous descent, I have received the benefit of whiteness my entire life and through every stage of my career. From that point forward, my life became dedicated to dismantling systems of inequity.

The EPIP LA Chapter is now recruiting Steering Committee members for 2020. The Steering Committee will provide leadership among philanthropic practitioners in the Los Angeles community by providing innovative programming, networking, and professional development opportunities. Please read more here about responsibilities, opportunities, and details on how to apply.

This month, we've been thinking about the challenges the social sector faces as we try to put diversity, equity, and inclusion principles into action, as well as some of the solutions being put into place to combat those issues. 

Volunteer Opportunity with Madison Square Boys & Girls Club 

The Madison Square Boys & Girls Club would like to partner with EPIP NY to bring programs to their teens. Madison Square Boys & Girls Club provides after-school and summer youth development programming to young people ages 6 to 18 in under-resourced neighborhoods of New York City.  

This month, we're lifting up the voices of those within philanthropy who are boldly telling their own stories...

• Native Americans in Philanthropy's (NAP) recently-released Truth & Healing Movement Toolkit is a treasure trove of resources, including books, videos, and social media accounts, that tell the story of Indigenous history and share present-day stories of resilience and ingenuity from Native peoples.
• For those in the Washington, DC area, the Guide to Indigenous DC app is a self-guided walking tour of the DC area that emphasizes tribal history and Indigenous contributions to the city.
• The Black Women's Guide to Philanthropy celebrates the contributions of Black women to our sector, features Black women philanthropists to follow, and shares how to give back in time, talent, testimony, and treasure.
• A Different Asian American Timeline traces Asian American history while placing it in a broader context of race, capitalism, and social movements.
• The Women's Philanthropy Institute highlights the contribution of donors to women's funds and foundations and finds that they see themselves as philanthropic leaders and are motivated by believing their gift can make a difference.

Recent protests by pro-immigrant activists in New York City have called attention to the presence of an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) office in the Starrett-Lehigh building in Manhattan that houses one of EPIP’s physical offices. While EPIP is a virtual organization, with employees across the country, we are members of the Centre for Social Innovation and use the offices in Starrett-Lehigh provided through that membership as a part-time workspace for one New York-area employee and one consultant. Until these recent actions, we were unaware that an ICE office was also in the building.

In the interests of full transparency, EPIP has long considered leaving the Starrett-Lehigh building as part of our overall commitment to a virtual workforce and culture, and are embracing this opportunity to operationalize our values and dedication to justice. As such, EPIP will not be renewing our sublease at the Starrett-Lehigh building and is committed to leaving the space this fall.

On June 18, 2019, EPIP held its first People of Color Network (PCN) Regional Gathering in Philadelphia in partnership with EPIP Philly. This half-day event, facilitated by The BIPOC Project, focused on the ways that white supremacy hinders coalition-building between communities of color and how to get past it to build solidarity. Attendees of the intimate convening included EPIP Philly steering committee members Kabria Rogers, who shares her reflections on the day.

This month, we're thinking about the just, equitable, and sustainable world that we name in our mission and are driving towards in all of our work. Sometimes, the journey is long, as seen in the powerful miniseries When They See Us, about the wrongful conviction of the Central Park Five, which has been watched by over 23 million Netflix accounts and recently received 16 Emmy nominations. 

That's why, this month, we have been drawn to:

This piece, written by EPIP Bay Area Steering Committee Member Daniel Lau, was originally published on NCG's blog. We felt it would resonate strongly with EPIP members and share an excerpt here. 

Everyone Counts, No Exceptions: What Does Japanese American Internment Have to Do With the Census?

The announcement came as we were pulling into our halfway point: “We’ll be stopping for about 15 minutes. We’ll also be distributing t-shirts, feel free to use this time to change.” Yes, I thought! I had been eyeing the black t-shirts with ‘Solidarity By Any Means Necessary’ in big block letters since we had gathered in Little Tokyo in Los Angeles and gotten on the bus in the wee hours of the morning.

My friend Christine and I were on our way to Manzanar, one of the ten American concentration camps where more than 110,000 Japanese Americans were incarcerated between 1942-1945. An annual Manzanar Pilgrimage is held on the last Saturday of April to commemorate the experience of Japanese Americans, reflect and heal from the legacy of racial persecution, and draw parallels to current-day racism and xenophobia. April 27, 2019 marked the 50th anniversary of the Manzanar Pilgrimage, and through the organizing efforts of our regional PSO (Philanthropy-Serving Organization) counterpart Southern California Grantmakers; Truth, Racial Healing, and Transformation - Los Angeles; and Vigilant Love, I was able to join along. Through the experience, I was not only able to deepen my personal practice of equity and social justice, but also connect it to NCG’s Public Policy efforts and one of the most important democratic activities of our country - the decennial census.   

When we at EPIP announced the departure of Executive Director Tamir Novotny in May, we knew two things were certain – 1) that we would continue to be a strong and leaderful organization, committed to our mission of building a just, equitable, and sustainable philanthropic sector and 2) that our community would stand beside us every step of the way. And true to form, our community has provided us with invaluable feedback and an outpouring of support, for which we are truly grateful. Your commitment to our shared vision for the sector, even during this period of transition, is inspiring and it is precisely why we remain steadfast in our efforts to ensure EPIP pushes forward to reach our goals and to build a sector that we can all be proud of.  

It was therefore important that we as an organization took our time to consider a path forward and to identify someone who embodies our values, is respected and trusted within the EPIP community and larger philanthropic sector, and can lead the organization through this transition period.  And so, it is with great excitement that we would like to announce that effective July 1st, Storme Gray, EPIP’s current Director of Programs, has been named EPIP’s Interim Executive Director.