What iF our laws were anti-racist?
Disrupting Institutions and Structures in government and philanthropy that perpetuate anti-Black racism and other intersectional discriminatory harms.
Government Leaders in Action Table
iF’s Government Leaders in Action Table supports regional professionals who are operationalizing racial equity in local government. We provide capacity building and technical assistance in the areas of policy, healing justice and self-care.
Our Inaugural 2021 participants include (from left to right):
Elaine Bonner-Tompkins (Senior Legislative Analyst at Montgomery County Council’s Office of Legislative Oversight); Temi F. Bennett, Esq. (iF’s Co-CEO); Saida Agostini (Healing Justice Activist); Marlysa Gamblin (Racial Equity Expert); Dr. Brian McClure (Director of the District's Council Office of Racial Equity); Tiffany Ward (Montgomery County’s Chief Equity Officer); Dr. Amber Hewitt (the District’s Chief Equity Officer); Jaqueline Tucker (Alexandria’s Chief Equity Officer); Dr. Yanique Redwood, (iF’s Former President & CEO); Karla Bruce (Fairfax County’s Chief Equity Officer); Dr. Anneta Arno (Director of DC Health’s Health Equity Office); and Samia Byrd (Arlington’s Chief Equity Officer).
Government Capacity Building and Local Coalition Support
iF supports government capacity building and local coalitions to transform how government resources are deployed, with the ultimate goal of disrupting and dismantling the public and private structures that perpetuate systems of extraction, greed and harm. Currently, iF supports the Montgomery County Racial Equity (MORE) Network, the DC Initiative on Racial Equity and Local Government, and the recently incubated coalition, "Voices of Black Fairfax."
Leadership Montgomery
$174,000
To provide racial equity training to government employees and support the participation of government employees in the REAL Inclusion program
DC Initiative on Racial Equity and Local Government
$30,000
To provide general support.
Montgomery County Racial Equity Network (More)
$30,000
To provide general support
Voices of Black Fairfax
$30,000
To provide general support
Resourcing Radical Justice
iF is a co-founder and co-chair of Resourcing Radical Justice (RRJ), a funders collective that centers Black liberation as the path to a thriving Greater Washington region. RRJ divests from white supremacy and invests in Black lives by advocating for philanthropic sector transformation, coordinating capacity building for and funding to Black- and POC-led grassroots organizers and lifting up and learning from radical organizers.
RRJ activities have included surveying Black people and other people of color in our local philanthropic sector to share stories about their experiences of interpersonal, institutional, and structural racism; hosting healing programs to reimagine how philanthropy and other workplaces dominated by a false hierarchy of human value are experienced; and clarifying collective action to transform the sector.
Virginia Power Building Funders
iF is a co-founder of the Virginia Power Building Funders, which seeks to provide philanthropic support—through direct financial resources and other means—to institutions in Virginia that are led by organizers and advocates who represent and are building the power of those who are most impacted by racial inequities. It sees building power of leaders and organizations in the movement for racial justice in Virginia state-wide as the central path to transforming systems.
It also seeks to collectively leverage its power in their respective roles and institutions in partnership with movement and community leaders in Virginia, through a multitude of strategies including: collective learning, imagination, and philanthropic experimentation; building relationships with and investing in grassroots organizers, advocates, and other power-builders; supporting efforts that center the voices of those most directly impacted by racial injustices; collaborating with and engaging funders in supporting this work; exploring philanthropy’s use of its own power to build agency and power of communities; and stewarding resources through their roles as funders and their connections to a larger network of philanthropy.
Civic Action Working Group
iF is a co-founder of the Civic Action Working Group, which seeks to advance philanthropic support for community organizing and advocacy and the infrastructure necessary to support communities and organizations that are undertaking actions that contribute to a stronger, more equitable civil society in the Washington, DC region. It will advance collective and individual action to promote civil society through different strategies, including: strengthening community-based organizations, especially those led by people of color; using all philanthropic assets to ensure community leaders of color are in positions of influence to affect societal well-being; and undertaking their own institutional actions to strengthen democracy and promote civil society.
Tools
iF uses the following tools to further our mission, which is to advocate for racial equity and racial justice through programs and investments that advance the health and well-being of low-income communities and communities of color living at the sharpest intersection of oppression.
“A Racial Equity Impact Assessment (REIA) is a systematic examination of how different racial and ethnic groups will likely be affected by a proposed action or decision. REIAs are used to minimize unanticipated adverse consequences in a variety of contexts, including the analysis of proposed policies, institutional practices, programs, plans and budgetary decisions. The REIA can be a vital tool for preventing institutional racism and for identifying new options to remedy long-standing inequities” (Race Forward).
The organizational assessment tool created by Western States Center contains a sampling of questions designed to help organizations examine the ways in which they currently engage with issues of racial justice.
Resources
Reports: Census 2020 Working Group #CountDMVIn // Funder’s Committee Individual State Reports
The Census Working Group, of which iF, A Foundation for Radical Possibility is a member, and the Funders Committee for Civic Participation issued separate reports on the work to ensure a fair 2020 Census count, particularly in communities that have been historically undercounted. You can learn more about the Census work in our region by reading these report.
Maximizing the Moment: Investing in Power-Building to Advance Racial Justice in Metropolitan Washington, DC (view)
The report describes the importance of community organizing, impact of this strategy in the Washington, DC region, and profiles of organizations that are undertaking community organizing.
Briefing Paper for Funders on Virginia Redistricting (view)
The paper provides information on the history of redistricting in Virginia, opportunities for engagement, and why funder engagement is critical.