Liberation Ventures

The California Black Freedom Fund is traveling across California to convene lawmakers, grassroots organizers, local leaders, and community members for important conversations on the local issues impacting Black communities and the fight for reparations. They are taking the State of Black California to Northern California, with stops in Sacramento (September 14) and Oakland (September 28). And, on October 5, they will cap off the series in Moreno Valley with the second annual State of the Black I.E., featuring a special keynote from civil rights and social justice icon Reverend Al Sharpton. https://lnkd.in/gMnMG3zF

On September 9 at 6:30 p.m., New Jersey Institute for Social Justice will hold its sixth public session, this time hosted by the Democracy Committee.  Throughout history, Black people in New Jersey have frequently occupied a “shadow” status of citizenship, with their political rights varyingly enforced, ignored or stripped.     In a democracy, where the right to vote is seen as sacred, the question becomes: what is the value of a single vote? And then - what does a State owe its citizens after denying their citizenship? These questions and more will be addressed in the next New Jersey Reparations Council meeting. https://lnkd.in/gyyr4MYb

The New York Reparations Commission is making progress! They met for the first time in July since Gov. Kathy Hochul formally announced its creation last December. During the meeting, the committee unanimously selected a chairperson, Dr. Seanelle Hawkins, who currently serves as president of the Urban League of Rochester and has an extensive career in nonprofit leadership. Their task, however, is time-sensitive: the commission will have 12 months from the date of its first meeting to issue a report with recommended actions to provide reparations to Black New Yorkers, to address the long-standing effects of the legacy of slavery. “When the recommendations come out, legislators still have to write bills and get those bills signed, based on the recommendations. And so there has to be an advocacy apparatus that is pushing legislators to actually turn these recommendations into legislation.” - Trevor Smith of The BLIS Collective https://lnkd.in/gigqCCJj

Excited to share that the folks at Monument Lab launched “Bulletin”, a public art and history print journal that offers perspectives on critically reading and reimagining monuments. In the inaugural issue they explore the theme of “Ghosts.” “Some contributors deal with the spirits that refuse to lay themselves to rest, while others offer new ideas for monuments that honor these specters by rendering them legible across various modalities. What results is a collection of visionary, nuanced, and exploratory discussions about the reparative possibilities of public art, public history, and public conversations about the ghosts that haunt us.” Contributors include Charles Athanasopoulos, Jeanne Dreskin, Paul Farber, Frances Ellen Watkins Harper, Naomieh Jovin, Cannupa Hanska Luger, Shannon Mattern, Nicholas Mirzoeff, TK Smith, and Marisa Williamson consider the specters, haunting sensations, and eerie remnants of the past as they relate public art, space, and memory. https://lnkd.in/eaAYeA-8

In “A Framework for Philanthropic Pluralism” for Nonprofit Quarterly, Vikas Maturi, LV’s Grantmaking Strategy and Research Manager, breaks down the long history of philanthropic pluralism and its impact on our movements. “Our field lacks a coherent framework of what ‘philanthropic pluralism’ means. In particular, the use of the term “pluralism” implies that the benefits of pluralism—the philosophical idea that political bodies are impacted by diverse thought—also result from philanthropic pluralism. [But] in identifying the concrete impacts of philanthropic pluralism, I find that it is not, in fact, particularly pluralistic.” - Vikas Maturi Vikas neither advocates for or against philanthropic pluralism. Instead, he invites us to practice greater intellectual honesty about the benefits and harms of philanthropic pluralism—and calls on philanthropy to take responsibility for repairing those harms. “Over the long haul, the drawbacks of philanthropic pluralism strengthen the argument for a just transition for philanthropy. Intentional efforts to shift decision-making power to communities and prioritize wealth redistribution can serve to strengthen democratic norms and advance a truly ‘common’ good.” https://lnkd.in/eit4vZ_v

Last week, racial justice advocates met with White House officials to compel President Biden to utilize his last few months in office to take executive actions on creating a pair of U.S. commissions on reparations and racial healing, instead of relying on congress to do so. “That’s not something you want Congress to do for you. You want to have it for yourself as arsenal where you can pull together experts and scholars and lawyers and all of those things. You can convene them and say, here’s what we’re up against. Help us think through this.” - Dr. Marcus Anthony Hunter First introduced in 1989, H.R. 40 had been consistently advocated for by Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee, who passed last month. The bill would create a U.S. commission to study the impacts of U.S. slavery and reparative measures for African-Americans. To date, the bill has never made it to a floor vote. Many feel now is the time for action. https://lnkd.in/gmvyjGFu

Two exciting opportunities from the folks at Land Justice Futures: On Monday, August 19 at 4pm ET, they are hosting a one-hour storytelling and information event to introduce you to the concepts of Mother Law and the new movement #ComplicitNoMore — both led by indigenous women and both templates for ways forward that center Indigenous sovereignty, perspectives and leadership. This is meant to help guide us towards ways of relating to each other, to activism, to Earth in order to center and nourish the entire web of life. https://lnkd.in/g6hvH-HD Additionally, Land Justice Futures just opened the application process to join the third cohort of Land Justice Future’s Focus Community Program. The Focus Community Program is for communities who are committed to centering the exploration of racial and ecological justice into future property planning beyond your present stewardship. Participants will need to form a team of 3-5 people from your community who can commit to an immersive 2-year cohort experience from February 4, 2025 through December 2026. https://lnkd.in/gCSCRgjR

"We recognize that the work of grantmaking comes with real power. For a movement that has historically been ignored by traditional foundations, decisions about who gets money makes a difference. These decisions can elevate certain ideologies, campaigns, and projects over others; resource certain leaders but not others; and, lend credibility to the work of those that are funded and vice versa to those that aren’t. How we give — including the kinds of proposals, reporting, impact measurement, and/or metrics that we do or don’t require — can also lead some organizations to be excluded. In addition, we walk a fine line as both a funder and a grantee ourselves. We are a drop in the bucket compared to endowed foundations and we cannot underestimate the power imbalances that exist because of our funder role. We know we need to use our power intentionally, by implementing deeply bold, empathetic, and durable interventions in the philanthropic space and in our own funding process."

We’re pleased to share "Local Reparations for a Just World: Case Studies and Recommendations for Local Governments," by Sommer Iqbal. This is a research paper LV sponsored alongside Osiris Professional Services, and Sommer was a 2024 Black Reparations Project Fellow. This project includes three case studies on emerging local reparations programs and a criteria analysis of various funding tools that state and local governments can use for reparations. Parts of this report were also included in the Local Reparations Policy Toolkit developed by Osiris Professional Services and First Repair. “It is imperative that our nation confronts, accounts for, and repair its legacy of chattel slavery and ongoing racial injustices against the Black community. Without reparations, entrenched systems of oppression—from white supremacy to racial capitalism—will continue to perpetuate disparate outcomes and inequality not just for Black and brown communities, but all Americans. But it’s not enough to only redress historical injustice. Reparations can be a means of creating a racially just future where everyone on our planet can thrive through transformative systems change. This project represents an incremental step toward supporting policymakers, advocates, and freedom fighters who are leading us toward that reparative and just world.” https://lnkd.in/eR226Rp3

Throughout 2023, we checked in with our community to gather feedback about how we are walking the walk. This year, we’ve focused on ensuring what worked is embedded in our organization and what wasn’t aligned with our beliefs is being recognized and phased out. In "Building an Accountable Organization at LV", we are sharing with our community examples of our accountability measures over the last year, namely related to our grantmaking and operations. Thank you to everyone who holds our feet to the fire. Please continue to, and we’ll do our very best to continue to act accordingly, and cultivate a culture where this is the norm. https://lnkd.in/eVixFPyk