Homelessness in the District of Columbia is an urgent problem and a moral imperative, but it can often seem futile to make any progress in our challenging political and logistical landscape. At any given time, almost 8,000 people are homeless in D.C., giving it the third-highest rate among American cities, behind Boston and Los Angeles. And according to a 2014 report from the U.S. Conference of Mayors, D.C. was one of just a few cities that saw its rate of homelessness increase from the previous year. In some ways, this isn’t a surprise. Space is at a premium in such a small, housing-starved city, and compounding this, D.C.’s city-level politics operate uniquely under the thumb of a sometimes capricious federal government.
However, a coalition of nonprofits brought together by faith and a commitment to social justice is working hard to change that status quo. Last month, their tireless organizing and advocacy paid off when the D.C. Council passed a budget for fiscal year 2016 that included record support for homeless services. The campaign crossed issue silos and worked at the grassroots level to pressure the council and the mayor’s office to prioritize the needs of D.C.’s homeless population.
The foundation grants that made their work possible are an example of the transformative power of strategic social justice philanthropy. Over the last decade, philanthropic support for the campaign’s three leading organizations – the Washington Interfaith Network, the DC Fair Budget Coalition and the Coalition for Nonprofit Housing and Economic Development – have received $6.8 million in grants. The support has come from leaders in social justice philanthropy at both the regional and national levels:
- The Charles Stewart Mott Foundation
- The Annie E. Casey Foundation
- The Eugene and Agnes E. Meyer Foundation
- The Morris and Gwendolyn Cafritz Foundation
- The F. B. Heron Foundation
- Moriah Fund
- The Public Welfare Foundation
- The Hill-Snowdon Foundation
The support enabled these nonprofits to organize homeless people, and concerned citizens across the city, to urge councilmembers and the mayor to beef up support for homeless services. Grantmaking that focuses on advocacy and organizing is, unfortunately, far from the norm. In 2012, just 14 percent of grantmaking nationwide was devoted to this work.
This underinvestment becomes even more egregious when you consider the impact such funding can have.
In the same 10 years that foundations invested $6.8 million in grassroots organizing around homelessness in D.C., the philanthropic sector gave $55.2 million in grants for homelessness direct services here, such as meals, housing and counseling. Last week when the new District budget was approved, the council and mayor increased funding for similar services by $120 million over a single year. The organizations working on the issue were able to leverage $6.8 million for advocacy and organizing into a direct services funding increase twenty times as large as foundations had invested in years past.
The direct service funding provided by foundations since 2005 was undoubtedly necessary to ensure the day-to-day survival homeless persons in the District. These foundations ought to be proud of their work among one of our country’s most underserved communities. But it is important that we, the philanthropic sector, take heed of signal moments like this one. Investing in advocacy and organizing can transform our work and obliterate the status quo and change systems for good. Who will step up and continue funding this work?
A 2012 study from NCRP found that “every dollar grantmakers and other donors invested in policy and civic engagement provided a return of $115 in community benefit.” Here we have more concrete proof of this fact. Imagine if more foundations joined those above in supporting systems change work in D.C. Imagine the impact the sector could have if they funded safety net services and increased their investments in advocacy and organizing by just $5 or $10 million. The potential for a deeper and broader movement for inclusive urban development and economic justice is there, but it is woefully underfunded. The FY16 DC budget’s homelessness priorities are a testament to the power of social justice philanthropy. The foundations who supported the campaign deserve much praise, and their peers ought to follow their example.
Ryan Schlegel is research associate at the National Committee for Responsive Philanthropy (NCRP). Follow @NCRP on Twitter.
The Coalition for Smarter Growth and CNHED host an affordable housing walking tour in DC in July 2014.
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