Last month, our Philanthropy and Gift Planning team piloted a new donor event format, hosting an intimate dinner with San Francisco Foundation CEO Fred Blackwell, the SFF Board of Trustees, and a small group of donors. The event, Bay Area Bold: Democracy on the Table, was a private conversation to spur new connections, learning, and action from our guests—all stakeholders in the work we share of making the Bay Area (and beyond) a place where everyone can exercise their political voice.
The conversation covered many facets of concern within the democratic system, such as the nationalization and hyper-polarization of politics, the weakening of the press, and the ability to educate the public on the basics of civil rights and duties. The discussion also raised the battle to control narratives, and the ways these can shape outcomes. There was profound agreement that we cannot take democracy for granted anymore.
With the midterm elections coming up, we know many donors are especially eager to see a thriving expansion of democracy. Before the 2020 election, SFF published a Democracy and Racial Justice Give Guide. Although so much has changed in our country since then, we offer this resource with a cross-section of organizations that we recommend confidently, in a style that might help you narrow in on what speaks most to you within the field. We hope you will also find our new 2022 Voter Guide to be a helpful resource.
Please reach out to your philanthropic advisor for more giving recommendations or assistance vetting potential grantees. We would also be thrilled to share more about our existing program initiatives supporting democracy in the Bay Area in our Power Pathway, Policy & Innovation, and Womxn of Color, Womxn of Power Program.
If you would like to learn more about this and other events, please email us at donorservices[at]sff.org.
