Executives' Alliance 2016 Impact Report: Stories of Collective Philanthropic Action for Boys and Men of Color

This 2016 impact report chronicles several stories of collective philanthropic action for boys of men and color, highlighting the work done and lessons learned by various movements and organizations (Ban the Box, The National Youth Alliance for Boys and Men of Color, RISE for Boys and Men of Color, and more) backed by the Executives' Alliance for Boys and Men of Color. 

• Ban the Box Philanthropy Challenge: In 2015, the Executives’ Alliance (EA) joined the grantee partners of many of its member foundations in pushing for change and adoption of “fair-chance” hiring policies that eliminate or delay questions about conviction or arrest history. The EA also lead a group of 50 foundations to make a commitment to adopt fair-chance hiring practices and initiated plans to create a fair chance hiring toolkit in order to respond to requests for technical assistance and to deepen impact and results in the philanthropic sector, even among foundations with longstanding commitments. Tweet
• Rapid Response Investments for Movement-Building: Inspired by challenges foundations encountered in coordinating response after police killings of people of color and the ensuing uprisings in St. Louis and Baltimore, the EA established a rapid response capacity to assist community stakeholders serving Boys and Men of Color in times of urgent need. In considering the most strategic uses of limited rapid response dollars, the EA staff identified a market gap in philanthropic support to communities of color in crisis. As a result, the EA made rapid response grants to support key movement-building efforts in Baton Rouge, Minneapolis, Orlando, and Indian Country from 2015-2016. Tweet
• The EA has been working the with National Youth Alliance for Boys and Men of Color, a strategic collaboration of five youth organizing networks committed to advancing the leadership of young men of color in organizing for change in their communities. The NYA network is also now positioned as a strategic partner for EA staff and member foundations to help ensure that young men of color deeply inform philanthropic strategy at every stage of development. Tweet
• Several EA members participated in the Narrative Change Collective Action Table, learning that creating narrative change is not the same as communications capacity, true narrative change requires the development of an echo chamber to drive narrative. Additionally, philanthropy should target its efforts not just at the general public but at key decision makers that affect boys and men of color such as the education and justice systems. Tweet
• To support individuals being released after the constitutional ban on juvenile life without parole sentencing, EA members quickly channeled over one million dollars into the resulting joint proposal, financing litigation support, data collection, trainings, and mitigation processes in the three most impacted states. Tweet