Love in action in Northeast Washington: A conversation with Lu Hill & Kerra Bower

The theme for 2023’s Black Philanthropy Month is “Love in Action,” an invitation to radically reimagine philanthropy through the lens of self-love, community love, and the love of Black people. 

To celebrate the deep roots of Black giving, we are featuring truthful conversations between Black grantees and Black funders. These conversations shed light on the relationships at the heart of philanthropy and showcase new ways of giving.

Grantee to Funder:

Kerra: What do you feel is often misunderstood about the relationship between funder and grantee?

Lu: I think sometimes it's forgotten the amount of power and privilege we have in these spaces. A lot of times we don’t account for that, especially when it comes to getting feedback from our grantees. Due to the power dynamic, grantees often want to appease us, and so we are not in a position to facilitate honest and authentic conversations.

It’s also unfortunately common to engage in tokenism, it's important for funders to be thoughtful in the way we are engaging with our grantees, particularly when it comes to communities of color, Black communities, and Indigenous communities so as to not replicate the same systems of marginalization we are attempting to disrupt.

Finally, I think we as funders are often not empathetic enough in terms of the struggle of being in direct service. We have the gift of time and thought, while our grantees are out there, elbows up getting busy. We expect them to stop what they are doing to do a listening session and give us feedback without appropriate compensation, time, and an authentic relationship.

Kerra: How can funders better support grantees beyond financial investments?

Lu: We need to show up and be in real relationship.

This goes beyond financial transactions, when we are doing philanthropy from a Black perspective, this isn't just a job. We are showing up in authentic ways in support of issues that affect our families — to be completely committed to seeing justice and equity.

We also come from a huge place of privilege. Personally, I am a light complected person of color who was raised in close proximity to whiteness. This means I have access to spaces and conversations that a lot of folks are locked out of. One of the things that we have to be really thoughtful of is making space at the table for people with different backgrounds and experiences.

Kerra: What has been the most empowering aspect of our relationship?

Lu: Honestly, getting to be in community with a human that is working so hard, not just on the direct service side, but on the policy side as well. It’s been so encouraging to see those worlds connect.

I’m not in philanthropy just to pass out checks, but to really embolden our community to demand more from philanthropy, to demand more in terms of the dollars they are getting and to demand more in how we engage in relationships and listen to what they need. That means as a funder getting out of the way, providing unrestricted funds, and being willing to step back to allow community to lead.

Funder to Grantee:

Lu: How does Black philanthropy differ from traditional philanthropic models?

Kerra: I am very new to the world of philanthropy and relying on foundations to sponsor my work. I came into these relationships understanding that there are many stereotypes around dark skinned women like myself. The innate feeling of hesitation and trepidation I have when I think about asking for money, especially when the amount of money that I’m asking for is usually held by those who don’t get a lot of interaction with people who look like me.

The first funding I ever received came from the Black Future Co-op Fund, and there was no ask. It was a random phone call on a Tuesday morning, and it was one of the founders saying, “We see you. And because we see you and the work that you're doing, we believe in you and we trust you. We trust your expertise, and we believe this funding will be used for the intended purposes.”

It’s been largely the same working with you, Lu, where you have the perspective that being present, being active, and doing the work is enough. When working with Black people or Black organizations within the philanthropic space that is often the case. In traditional philanthropy, you often have this song and dance to prove that you are worthy and that distracts from the work.

Lu: What ways are you attempting to influence your sector to increase investments in Black communities?

Kerra: As an early childhood educator, one of the things that I’ve understood is that there are so many intersections with early childhood education in housing, the job market, food access, etc. So I have made it a point that whenever I’m on a board and talking to people, I encourage them to bring smaller organizations under their wing, especially when they win these big grants. By bringing in other smaller Black organizations that are in the same realm and teaching them how to develop infrastructure and experience, during the next grant cycle they are also empowered to apply.

I’ve also been really trying to encourage large, Eurocentric organizations to think about long-term investment. There are a lot of organizations claiming DEI and wanting to use their privilege in a positive way and, the truth is, if you really want to get out of that savior complex, it’s not just about feeding people, it's about teaching them how to fish.

Lu: What have you learned through our relationship?

Kerra: At the beginning I didn’t even know I could apply with the Empire Health Foundation because I’m not directly related to health, but as the relationship has developed I feel like we are truly partners.

So now I don’t just go to Empire Health when I need funding, I can go to them when I need general assistance. Sometimes I have questions around an amazing program they just ran, or questions around the basics of how to run a nonprofit and they are always there. I feel like it's a safe space, and Lu, you have done an incredible job in curating a space where not only is it safe to be authentic, but it's also a space where you are making sure that me, my family, and business are taken care of and that I can thrive and not just survive.

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Raze Development is a culturally based preschool and development center that highlights Black American excellence and joy. Raze works to create equitable learning opportunities for all students by systemically razing the narrative of the Black student, and equipping and empowering families and community to raise a new healthy and equitable narrative of the Black student.

Empire Health Foundation imagines an Inland Northwest where everyone determines their own paths to healthy, thriving lives, no matter who we are, where we live, or how much money we make. It is a community that embraces many cultures, identities, and beliefs — connected to one another and nurtured by the natural beauty surrounding us.