Issue Highlights
Funders for LGBTQ Issues' Latest Tracking Report: Some Good News, More Not So Good | Inside Philanthropy
U.S. foundations’ support for LGBTQ issues and nonprofits in this country increased by nearly $90 million in 2021. That’s a large jump in just one year, from $164.3 million to $251.9 million in inflation-adjusted dollars.
More Cuts at Open Society Foundations: Nearly Half of Staff to Depart, Offices Close | Inside Philanthropy
As OSF reaches a new stage in its longtime bid to bring focus to its legendarily complex operations, it will let go of 40% of staff to “maximize impact.” Critics point to a consolidation of power amid low morale and a shrinking global footprint.
This Billionaire Heiress and Her Husband Have a Huge Philanthropic Footprint in Their Hometown | Inside Philanthropy
The Stryker Johnston Foundation’s website defines its mission as partnering “with organizations and groups to change the systems and structures that create intergenerational poverty, particularly among Black people, people of color, and other communities that have been left out or left behind.” It currently has a staff of seven, and Ronda is the president of the board while William’s the treasurer and secretary.
LGBTQ Social Justice
Europe's Parliament seeks wider role in global fight against anti-gay laws
The resolution passed by an overwhelming 416-62 vote on April 18, at a time when parts of Europe and Africa were already experiencing a backlash against the rights of sexual and gender minorities.
Olympic champion Caster Semenya wins human rights case but testosterone rules may remain for years | AP News
the European Court of Human Rights decided she was discriminated against by rules in track and field that force her to medically reduce her natural hormone levels to compete in major competitions
A monumental LGBTQ rights case is barreling toward the Supreme Court, in L.W. v. Skrmetti - Vox
Before L.W. was handed down this past weekend, there was a consensus among federal courts that the Constitution prohibits states from banning gender-affirming medical care.
L.W. destroys that consensus. It reinstated a Tennessee law, previously blocked by a federal trial court, that prohibits gender-affirming care for transgender patients under the age of 18
Transgender Care Bans Leave Families and Doctors Scrambling - The New York Times
The uncertainty is over more than medical care. Families with transgender children are also concerned about new laws that restrict access to restrooms and sports teams.
Stonewall Veteran Miss Major Is On The Road, Urging Trans People To ‘stand Up And Fight’ - Towleroad Gay News
Now over 80 years old, the legendary trans activist has left Little Rock, Arkansas, her adopted hometown, to spread the word with trans people in New York City, Washington, D.C., and beyond: They need to wake up, stand up and realize just how perilous the current political moment is.
Georgia's Gender-Affirming Care Ban Stands for Now, Judge Rules
U.S. District Judge Sarah E. Geraghty Wednesday decided to allow the law to stand because, she said, the request was filed too late
5th grade Georgia teacher fired for reading "divisive" book about acceptance - LGBTQ Nation
An elementary school teacher in Georgia has been fired for reading a “divisive” book about acceptance to her 5th-grade class.
She bought the book, My Shadow is Purple, at the school’s own Scholastic Book Fair.
North Carolina Advances Trans Ban Ruled Unconstitutional In Other States
A bill moving through North Carolina previously would have banned state facilities from providing gender affirming care to trans youth. Now, the senate has amended it to be a total ban on care.
Great Apes & Gibbons
Drones improve counts of rare Cao-vit gibbon, identify conservation priorities
A survey using drones has come up with a more accurate, albeit smaller, population estimate for the critically endangered Cao-vit gibbon in the border region between Vietnam and China.
Poverty-fueled deforestation of Nigerian reserve slashes hope for rare chimps
Facing an unemployment rate surpassing 50% and a soaring level of poverty, many Nigerians have few options other than to settle in the country’s protected areas and hew farms from forest.
Orangutan ‘beatboxing’ offers clues about human language, study says
Researchers have discovered that orangutans possess vocal abilities similar to beatboxing, where they can produce two different sounds simultaneously.
Chimpanzee sees sky for first time in viral video from Florida shelter - The Washington Post
A video of the chimp staring slack-jawed as she emerged into her new habitat for the first time went viral after it was shared last month by Save the Chimps, a Fort Pierce, Fla., sanctuary.
Philanthropy
Jonathan D Lewis Obituary (1958 - 2023) - Legacy Remembers
Inspired by his father, Peter B. Lewis, Jonathan began his transition to political activism in the early 2000's, supporting progressive political efforts focused on the fight for LGBTQ equality and youth empowerment. To truly challenge the status quo and build a sustainable progressive movement, Jonathan believed that young people and their creative energy and idealism were essential.
How to trust: When funders and grantees get it right | Commentary and opinion | Features | PND
Having worked with and served numerous philanthropic and nonprofit organizations over years, we have learned that there are some predictable components to fruitful, trust-based funder-grantee relationships.
Rigorous Evaluation Versus Trust-Based Learning: Is This a Valid Dichotomy? - The Center for Effective Philanthropy
While most of the philanthropy field continues down a business-as-usual evaluation path, a new approach to learning is rising — one that is rooted in trust, equity, and learning for impact.
Transforming Organizer-Funder Learning Partnerships | by Katie Fox | Jun, 2023 | Medium
Over the next year, Grassroots Solutions, with support from The California Endowment, is conducting a field-building project to help bridge the divide between organizer and funder learning practices.
Fair-Weather Friends? Progressive Nonprofits' Dangerous Dependence on the Liberal Rich | Inside Philanthropy
there’s a case to be made that we’ve reached peak progressive mega-donor. And more than that, progressive nonprofits’ heavy reliance on the rich, though understandable from a fundraising perspective, means that the policy and movement infrastructure those donors bankroll is more financially brittle and ideologically out of touch than it could be, and should be
Executive co-leadership: An emerging model for better economic equality | Commentary and opinion | Features | PND
a growing wave of nonprofits like ours are diverging from the traditional executive director model to experiment with new ways of working and new ways of sharing power and centering BIPOC leaders, and are planning better for succession