Grantees Are Imagining Alternatives to Racial Capitalism

THE THIRD BLOG ENTRY IN OUR SERIES ON RACIAL CAPITALISM

Racial Capitalism is a system of policies and practices that places unequal value on the humanity of workers, especially by race and ethnicity.

This series examines how three NWAF program officers are learning about and supporting alternatives to racial capitalism so that Native Americans, communities of color, immigrants, refugees, and people in rural areas can thrive on their own terms.

We’d like to share three examples from grantees advancing economic justice.

Grantees organizations are creating economic models that disrupt racial capitalism and transform their communities. Their work builds economies in which all communities, including Native Americans and communities of color, can thrive on their own terms.  

You might recall from the first two blog posts of this series that the three of us recently participated in the Racial Capitalism Community of Practice, which was convened by Neighborhood Funders Group’s Funders for a Just Economy, bringing together staff from a variety of philanthropic organizations. The first two blogs described how participating in the community of practice gave us a deeper understanding of what racial capitalism is and how philanthropy plays a role in it.

This blog explores the work of three grantee organizations that offer examples of the kind of alternatives to racial capitalism that inspire us.

CAPACES Leadership Institute advances community wealth building.

For more than 50 years, the fertile land of the Mid-Willamette Valley, in northwest Oregon, has been a battleground for the rights of immigrant farmworkers. Last year, this movement leveraged its collective political power to purchase 60 acres of land to reclaim its culture and create an agricultural system that upholds its values.

One of the nonprofits that’s helping to organize the movement is the CAPACES Leadership Institute, a collective hub for 10 organizations that serve Latino, Indigenous, and African-descendant people of the region. An excellent example of CAPACES’ work is the Anahuac Farm, which offers youth, families, and farmers from Indigenous communities in the Americas a place to reconnect to their traditional agricultural and culinary heritage.

Many immigrants to the US experience a form of exclusion that involves rejection of ancestral wisdom and cultural practices. At Anahuac, community members learn about traditional foods and herbs and participate in agricultural ceremonies and healing practices.

Anahuac trains future farmers in traditional and sustainable agriculture practices. They receive support to create small businesses and cooperatives that will distribute food products into their communities.

Deep listening leads Byrd Barr Place to reclaim space for Black communities.

Byrd Barr Place, a historically Black organization rooted in Seattle’s Central District, confronts racism through direct services and advocacy in Seattle and across Washington.

In 2016, the organization joined together with several Black-led organizations in the Seattle area to create a community of practice. The Foundation began supporting the community of practice through the African American Financial Capability Initiative.

The community of practice had planned to collaborate on the design of a financial education initiative. But when it sought feedback from the Black community before moving forward, community members called for a redesign. They asked to focus, instead, on the need to restore community spaces and Black-owned businesses within the Central District, many of which had been forced out by gentrification and citywide polices that targeted Black communities.

Thunder Valley CDC commits to sustainability and regeneration.

Thunder Valley Community Development Corporation (TVCDC) was created by youth with a vision of freedom from colonization and a future of hope, compassion, and culture. Located on the Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota, TVCDC advances liberation for Lakota youth and families throughout Oglala territory by centering healing and spirituality.

Its Lifeways and Wellness Equity (LWE) framework provides healing pathways through art, language, history, and spirituality. LWE is at the heart of TVCDC’s eight interconnected initiatives that position the community to drive solutions and thrive on their own terms. TVCDC’s services range from employment services to childcare, education, and cultural events.

TVCDC addresses a long history of underinvestment in Indian Country, including for spending on basic infrastructure, like water and electric systems. Most economic and community development projects that do occur on reservations, like Pine Ridge, are designed to meet the aims of outside funders, such as the federal government, foundations, or private enterprises.

These funders often favor approaches that reflect racial capitalism by extracting resources from people, the land, and economy. The results can produce deep environmental harm and an unsustainable future for generations to come.

These kinds of alternatives help reimagine what’s possible for our economy and the communities we serve.

These three organizations show how communities are breaking away from the effects of racial capitalism and instead finding ways to build economies that work for Native Americans and people of color. Alongside community members, they are asking fundamental questions as they design their work, such as: What systemic causes led to this current reality? and How do we use our cultural values as the basis for what we’re trying to create?

Through these organizations, we also see how racial capitalism has played out in ways that are different for each community. There is not going to be a one-size-fits-all way of building alternatives. Each community needs alternatives to racial capitalism that respond to its history, culture, and current needs. As program officers, we will continue to listen for and recognize these unique contexts.

We know that so many other examples are taking root across our region—some of which we have already funded, and some that we are still hoping to find. If you are doing work that breaks away from racial capitalism, please reach out to us to let us know about your efforts.

For further info, contact any of this blog’s authors:

Read the first two blogs in this series:

Learn more about our partners: