Council on Foundations Launches 'Generosity Builds' Campaign Amidst Government Scrutiny
The Council on Foundations has initiated its 'Generosity Builds' campaign, a nationwide effort to highlight the positive societal contributions of charitable foundations and nonprofits. The campaign aims to counter increased scrutiny from the federal government and populist movements, which the advocacy group says treat the sector like an enemy. Representing approximately 1,000 nonprofits, the Council seeks to address a "perception gap" where many Americans may not fully recognize their reliance on charitable services, amid political attacks and proposals for new taxes on foundations.
A nationwide network of charitable foundations has launched a new campaign titled "Generosity Builds," encouraging its members to emphasize their positive contributions to American life. The Council on Foundations, which represents approximately 1,000 nonprofits, describes this initiative as a 250th anniversary campaign aimed at quelling what it perceives as heightened scrutiny from the federal government and populist movements.
According to Kathleen Enright, CEO of the Council on Foundations, popular notions that philanthropy is merely a pursuit for the ultrawealthy to fund partisan projects and commit fraud have left the sector vulnerable to political attacks. These perceptions, Enright states, influence policies that can hamper essential community services. The campaign seeks to overcome a "perception gap," as a 2023 Indiana University Lilly Family School of Philanthropy report indicated that only about 1 in 20 adults reported receiving nonprofit services in the past year, suggesting many do not label these services as such.
The charitable sector has faced significant challenges, including during negotiations over President Donald Trump’s tax and spending bill, which included proposals to levy new taxes on private foundations. These measures, Enright noted, would have diverted resources from communities if enacted. The Trump administration also froze, cut, or threatened a range of social service grants, characterizing them as "government largesse that's often riddled with corruption, waste, fraud, and abuse."
Criticism has also come from figures like Vice President JD Vance. As a U.S. Senate candidate in 2021, Vance described the Ford Foundation, the Gates Foundation, and the Harvard University endowment as "cancers on American society," suggesting these institutions were subsidizing those he believed were harming the country. He characterized some nonprofits as "social-justice hedge funds."
Despite these narratives, Enright asserts that stories of nonprofits being "overly politicized" or wasteful represent "extreme minority stories" that do not accurately reflect the broader philanthropic landscape. Kathryn Thomas, vice president of communications for the Charles Stewart Mott Foundation, echoed this sentiment, stating the sector has not faced such a challenging environment in nearly six decades. She highlighted the need to better emphasize the sector's purpose amidst partisan attacks and polarization.
Enright also addressed growing concerns about billionaires' influence, acknowledging that it fuels suspicion about philanthropists' motivations. She emphasized that the story of philanthropy is not simply one where a rich person "saves the day." (Source: Fortune)
