Shariq Siddiqui: Increase in giving is not uniformly felt

The Chronicle of Philanthropy recently released a list of the nation’s top 100 not-for-profits that garnered the most funding through charitable donations in 2020. These organizations received about $1 out of every $11 donated over the course of the year. Giving to these not-for-profits rose 3.7%, largely driven by wealthy donors.

While the list showed a significant increase for networks of food banks and other agencies that help people eat, it largely focused on organizations that have been supported in the past. In fact, as one scholar points out, many of the not-for-profits that raised the most money during a very tumultuous year were the country’s prominent institutions in education, health care and international development.

Traditionally only 2% of U.S. giving is sent overseas, and therefore, it is interesting that international-development not-for-profits made this list. It would be interesting to see whether we see similar changes in the total giving to international causes. Could the global pandemic have resulted in a feeling among U.S. donors that they have an obligation to support those in greater need as the world is more interconnected than we previously assumed?

The murder of George Floyd resulted in a national conversation about the need to support organizations led by people of color. However, this list did not see an increase in organizations that are led by people of color or primarily fund communities of color. The vast majority of the groups are led by white people, although many organizations have sought to establish or further racial-equity initiatives. Despite the national conversation about race and the disproportionate impact of the pandemic on people of color, it is unfortunate that we don’t see more funding for these communities.

Similarly concerning is that organizations that further women’s health care, like Planned Parenthood, saw a decline in funding, making it harder for women to access health care during a pandemic. Similarly, a decline in funding for arts organization will only further exacerbate our polarization, leaving even fewer spaces for important conversations that occur through the arts.

This list suggests further investment is needed in minority-led not-for-profits at the grassroots level. To further best practices among such organizations, the Muslim Philanthropy Initiative at the Indiana University Lilly Family School of Philanthropy has established a project called The Ihsan Standard, funded by the Muslim Legal Fund of America.

The Ihsan Standard is a community-based, participatory-action research project dedicated to raising excellence among minority-led and Muslim American not-for-profits with rigorous research and a supportive legal ecosystem. The Ihsan Standard aims to encourage organizations to better steward assets and mission, promote transparency, support ethical decision making, meet government requirements, and foster community confidence. The Ihsan Standard also builds capacity among legal providers and scholars through continuing legal education. The Ihsan Standard will also add to the emerging scholarship about organizational decision-making and leadership practices at Muslim American not-for-profits through community participation and rigorous research.

While this research project focuses on minority-led and Muslim American not-for-profits, its learnings can be used to benefit grassroots organizations during a crisis. By helping minority-led not-for-profits better implement best practices and foster greater donor confidence, the project hopes to see a future where more organizations led by people of color or who fund communities of color are on the list of top 100 not-for-profits in the United States.•

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Siddiqui is assistant professor and director of the Muslim Philanthropy Initiative at the Lilly Family School of Philanthropy at Indiana University, senior fellow at the Center for Global Politics and founder of the Center on Muslim Philanthropy.

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