When Ebonie Johnson Cooper first founded the Young, Black, & Giving Back (YBGB) Institute nearly a decade ago, she had no idea that she would spark a national philanthropic movement.
Founded in 2014, YBGB serves Black-led, Black-benefitting nonprofits by providing leaders with much-needed trainings, resources, and capacity-building support to meet their organizational needs. However, as Johnson Cooper met with Black-led nonprofit leaders over the years, one need stood out among the others. Fundraising.
“Nationally, less than 2 percent of funding goes to Black communities and Black-led organizations,” Johnson Cooper explained, citing a statistic from the Association of Black Foundation Executives – a disparity that continues despite the recent spike in funding in the aftermath of the COVID pandemic and the murder of George Floyd.
So in 2018, Johnson Cooper and the YBGB team decided to take matters into their own hands. They organized Give 8/28 – a national day of giving for Black-led and Black-benefiting nonprofits, aimed at mobilizing the power of black philanthropy.
“August 28th is already a significant day in the Black community,” Johnson Cooper explained. “It’s the day that Emmett Till was murdered. It’s the day that Barack Obama announced he was running for President. It’s the day that our beloved T’Challa (Chadwick Boseman) passed away. It’s the day that Jackie Robinson was admitted into Major League Baseball.”
“We wanted to turn it into a special day for our nonprofits, as well.”
Inspired by movements like #GivingTuesday, Give 8/28 provides a platform for Black-led and Black-benefitting nonprofits to showcase their work to potential donors from across the country. In addition to providing a platform, YBGB also provides toolkits, webinars, trainings and prizes to help participants be successful and reach their fundraising goals.
In just five years, the event has grown exponentially. In 2018, Give 8/28 raised a collective $12,700 for 114 nonprofits. Last year, that amount soared to more than $250,000 – with more than 1,700 donors participating.
“Black Giving is Magic,” Johnson Cooper said when asked the secret behind the movement “It’s who we are!”
“The history of Black Philanthropy definitely doesn’t begin with us [Give 8/28],” she explained. “It begins on a very organic, community-oriented level. It begins with Blackness.”
“It begins by knowing and understanding that Black people have always been community-centered; have always taken care of our own.”
“Doing the work – and supporting the work -- is a part of who we are. We’re not looking for anyone to save us; we’re taking care of business.”
“This idea of building a self-sustaining community provides the impulse to Black Giving that cannot be replicated.”
For participating nonprofits, the impact of this support from Black Philanthropy – however small – cannot be overstated.
“I remember one year, there was a very young organization that worked with LGBTQ+ youth,” Johnson Cooper recalled. “It was their first year, so they had no idea what to expect. I think they only raised a couple hundred dollars – but they were so thrilled.”
“‘You have no idea what this means to us, as a new organization’ they told me. ‘We’ve never done this before, so to raise this amount of money is huge.’”
“And then they added -- ‘We’re excited to come back next year and do even better!’”
Johnson Cooper also credits part of Giving 8/28’s success to YBGB’s partnership with community foundations. The Greater Washington Community Foundation is one of three local community foundations sponsoring Giving 8/28 this year.
“Philanthropy is about more than just cash,” Johnson Cooper said. “It’s also about fostering and leveraging relationships to do the most good while causing the least harm. It’s about building a stronger community.”
“By supporting events like Give 8/28, community foundations help build that community --fostering relationships between donors and nonprofits to multiply the magic of Black Giving.”
The Community Foundation is proud to sponsor Giving 8/28. We strongly encourage our Black-led nonprofit partners to join us for this celebration of Black Philanthropy. Registration closes on August 14th.
We also invite our fundholders to learn more about Give 8/28 and support incredible, Black-led organizations near you.
For more information, visit www.give828.org.