Blog Home > Black Philanthropy > Black Philanthropy Month: Interview with Valaida Fullwood 
August 30, 2022
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Michele Dudley
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In celebration of black history month, I spoke with Valaida Fullwood, author of Giving Back, A Tribute to Generations of African American Philanthropy, featured in our blog earlier this month. Valaida is a Founding Member of the New Generation of African American Philanthropists (NGAAP) and the Principal Architect and Vision Keeper at The Soul of Philanthropy. 

ValaidaFullwood edited Black Philanthropy Month: Interview with Valaida Fullwood 

Michele: 

As we celebrate Black Philanthropy Month this month, can you explain what differentiates Black philanthropy from other cultural approaches to philanthropy? 

Valaida: 

When I speak of Black philanthropy, I like to make the point that it’s more than Black people engaging in philanthropy. It speaks to deep cultural traditions and values. There are some characteristics about Black philanthropy that distinguish it. One is that we give more than money – we bring our full selves to our philanthropy, and oftentimes, but not always, it’s sacrificial. We’re giving up something in order to give.  The perception of white philanthropy is that it’s often approached out of abundance and great wealth. In summary, there are four differentiators: Black philanthropy is sacrificial, mutual, about more than money, and tends to focus on social justice issues. 

You don’t have to be Black to engage this way. When a Black person prepares a meal, that does not make that meal soul food. Soul food speaks to cultural traditions and beliefs around our food ways. So is the case with Black philanthropy. It means more than the race of the person writing a check, volunteering or engaging in philanthropy, but the spirit with which it is done. 

Michele: 

There’s so much that we can appreciate and learn from that approach.  

What gifts do Black women bring specifically to philanthropy?  

Valaida: 

Women are so caring and connected to communities and to each other that we gain insights on folk’s needs, whether they’re expressed or not. Bringing those distinct feminine ways sweetens the giving and deepens the philanthropy that we engage in. 

As you know, from my book, Giving Back, it was my great-aunt Dora who influenced me. So many of the stories I hear include women who lived out loving and generous ways of giving themselves to their communities and to people who needed support. 

Michele: 

That aligns with what we’ve learned from the Women Doing Well research – women want to give more than money, we want to engage in the work. 

The Black community has such a strong tradition of faith. How do you feel that faith has played a role in the community’s approach to generosity and giving? 

Valaida: 

Yeah, I think faith has played a tremendous role. Researchers have said that the Black church was the original community foundation. Faith has a very big influence on my life personally, and also on the lives of the people who inspired and shaped my philanthropy. My personal experience is reflective of the broader Black community in terms of scripture and values from the church that shape how and why we give. 

Every August, the philanthropic collective that I’ve founded, New Generation of African American Philanthropists (NGAAP) has a big giving day which falls on August 28th – a date of tremendous cultural significance to Black communities. A number of significant events have occurred on that date, both tragic and joyous. And this year, the 28th happens to fall on a Sunday and we’re partnering with one of our collaborators, Friendship Missionary Baptist Church here in Charlotte, a prominent Black church to celebrate our big giving day. We are also connecting with other Black clergy to build relationships and mutual understanding of what our philanthropic collective, NGAAP, is about to better understand the priorities and interest among the Black faith community here in Charlotte. 

Michele: 

What trends do you see in Black philanthropy? 

Valaida: 

With Black philanthropy specifically, there’s a rise in the numbers of philanthropic collectives or giving circles like the one that I started 16 years ago, NGAAP. Over time, we’ve been a resource for other Black giving circles that are getting started. Collective giving and giving circles are an extension of the traditions of black philanthropy since the slave era continuing African models and traditions where folks pool resources. In the slave era, freed black people would pool their resources to buy the freedom of other family members and associates. When opportunities to accumulate wealth were denied from us, our families and communities, collective giving, giving what little you did have and pooling that together, was a common approach to create institutions, build schools, and make things happen for the benefit of others and the community as a whole.  

Another trend is a sharpened focus on supporting Black-founded and Black-led nonprofits. In the early days of NGAAP, we focused our resources on the population served by the non-profit. Now we’ve sharpened our focus because we recognize that oftentimes the leadership of organizations serving Black communities is not reflective of the communities they serve. We believe that proximity, cultural competence and authentic relationships in the communities being served are important. Black-founded and led nonprofits are often underfunded and under resourced – they need our support. More and more Black givers, philanthropic collectives, and foundations have a comparable focus.  

The pandemic and the racial protests of 2020 have resulted in a deeper understanding of the challenges and barriers in our communities. Philanthropy has been listening to the activists, organizers and advocates on the ground working the front lines and are recognizing that traditional institutional and individual funding approaches aren’t serving the community as well as they could and they’re making some shifts.  

There’s also an increased consciousness of trust and the importance of building trust. So many practices in philanthropy are grounded in “are you worthy of these resources?” and “can we trust you with these dollars?” There are a lot of unnecessary hoops, barriers, and red tape that limit access to those dollars, which places an unfair burden on nonprofits that are often under-resourced and understaffed. There’s increased recognition of these issues with philanthropists beginning to rethink how we approach financial support of those working on the front lines in our communities. If you want to know how those resources are being used, engage in conversation rather than rigorous assessments and evaluations and reports. 

Michele: 

What are your hopes for the future of Black philanthropy as well as philanthropy and generosity in America? 

Valaida: 

My hope for philanthropy and generosity is for people to recognize the full spectrum of giving, generosity, and philanthropy. As we know, ideas around philanthropy and giving are largely shaped by fundraising needs and the tendency to lean toward high net worth people only. The full breadth of givers in our communities are often unrecognized. Our work during Black Philanthropy Month helps widen that lens and widen our imaginations about who can give, who cares about community and who can influence and shape the direction of our communities going forward. My big hope is that regardless of we call ourselves, philanthropists, or givers, or donors, that people can see themselves and aspire to be philanthropist and noted givers. 

Michele: 

I’m curious, do you have a favorite story or a favorite photo in the book?  

Valaida: 

The story of Elizabeth Ross Dargan.  Her niece, Miss Esther shared the story of her aunt. Miss Elizabeth was a widow in her early twenties and was a beautician in the community. After her husband died, she was concerned about maintaining her life and her standard of living. She learned about a job at a historically HBCU (historically black college or university) and drove there to apply for the job. When she got there, she was told that she really wasn’t qualified for the position, but they hired her for another position and thought she would be a great student there. 

They enrolled her and she became a teacher/educator. While she wasn’t a match for the job, someone saw her potential and directed her toward a college degree. When she had one of her first job interviews after graduating from college, she was driving to the appointment and her car died on her on the way. Fortunately, she crossed paths with a mechanic who fixed her car and she was able to make her appointment. When she asked him what she owed him, he said, “do something for somebody else.” So that became her mantra which she passed on throughout her life – she was always very active in the community, serving on boards and consistently contributing to the community. When she passed, unbeknownst to her family, since she’d been a public school teacher with a modest income, her estate awarded six figure donations to several nonprofits including her alma mater Fayetteville State, other HBCU’s and nonprofits she had served during her life. 

Because she was a school teacher and a Black woman, a lot of people were surprised by the size of her gift – it was awakening for many people about who is a philanthropist. 

Michele: 

What does generosity mean to you as someone who’s working in the philanthropy space? 

Valaida: 

The visual that comes to mind with the word generosity, for me, is fullness. As I host events during black philanthropy month I’m wishing people a generous and joyous black philanthropy month. That’s the spirit I would love for everybody, whether you’re of African-American descent or African descent or not, to embrace the spirit of what traditionally has been known as black philanthropy. 

Michele: 

I struggle with the term philanthropy myself… But there’s something empowering about claiming that word because it often feels like it has been set aside as for people like the Gates. Really it’s about anyone who really wants to engage and make a difference in their community. 

Valaida: 

Exactly and we lose sight of that. So this week we celebrated the birthday of James Baldwin. Some of his writing aligns with my ideas around philanthropy and the imperative to reclaim the root meaning of philanthropy, which centers on love. We got off track and it’s all about the money and how many zeros are behind the dollar sign. But really when we re-center it on love, then there’s a place and a role for everybody. 

Michele: 

One thing that I love about the Black community’s approach to giving is that it’s integrated into the lifestyle, and there’s seems to be a greater degree of mutual or reciprocal giving. There is a lot that the larger philanthropic community can learn from that approach – I’d love to hear your thoughts on this. 

Valaida: 

Yeah. That communal spirit and sense of mutuality, that spirit of the African principle of Ubuntu, “I am I am because you are” – the recognition that my humanity is grounded in your humanity. So yeah, that principle does drive a lot of our philanthropy and influences how we give.  

Just recognizing you can be a beneficiary one day and a benefactor the very next day because of some of the struggles that we as a community, and as a historically oppressed people. Many Black people who may have experienced poverty, oppression or trauma have heightened sensibilities and are keen to help each other out where we can. 

The other day I was asked “where should I start? How can I determine what to give to?” Start with your own story and your own experiences with generosity, whether it was as beneficiaries of generosity or what you witnessed through your family and values. Let that be a driving force.

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