Photo: McBoat Photography
supporting our mission and one another can become all encompassing, cause secondary trauma, or riddle us with guilt or even a saviorism mentality. Brene Brown also said, “When you do this kind of work, you become tethered to people, but you must find a way to know when your story ends and theirs begin, or you won’t make it.” Balance for me is also when I can untether myself, with no regrets. Cole: As an African American women leader, what do you consider to be one of the most difficult obstacles you have faced? Cook: The BridgeSpan Group’s 2020 report on racial equity in philanthropy highlighted disparities for leaders of color, underscoring challenges I have navigated throughout my nonprofit career. Nonprofits led by people of color often receive less support from donors compared to those led by white counterparts, impacting financial stability and community trust. The average is 24% less financial support. But for Black leaders, it can be as much as 45% less financial support and 91% less unrestricted
donations. Cultural differences and perceptions of professionalism further complicate some board and donor relationships. Despite these noted obstacles, with the help of my board and staff we are committed to driving equity and inclusion within the organization and beyond. Leading with integrity and resilience, I challenge misconceptions and advocate for funding equity to support communities effectively. The imbalance of wealth in our country does not help as CEOs of color’ social and professional circles often do not have the financial wealth/ resources of that of our counterparts. The article ends with “Because most nonprofits primarily serve marginalized Black, Brown, poor or “othered” communities, population-level impact on the issues donors care about cannot happen without funding more leaders of color.” In 2020-2022 many funders leaned into these findings and support increased exponentially for organizations led by Black, Brown, some LBGTQ and those with lived experience leaders of nonprofits, including mine. It has not been without consequence as we navigate the attacks on JEDI efforts, and weather losses of other 21 The Acumen
Powered by FlippingBook