Seeing a lot for sale signs lately around your neighborhood?
But the prices are astronomical?
The more you look, the more you notice that your neighborhood isn’t truly yours anymore.
It seems as if your neighborhood is being gentrified.
Gentrification is the process of renovating and improving a house or district so that it conforms to middle-class taste.
If you look across America, this is slowly becoming the standard: pushing Black, Indigenous, people of color (“BIPOC”), and other marginalized groups out of their own neighborhoods. However, this shouldn’t be the case at all!
Marginalized groups should have the opportunity to grow and strive within their own places with true ownership.
This is where people can use capital for social justice. Foundations create mission-related investments (MRIs), program-related investments (PRIs), and other types of impact investment to help those who typically do not have access to traditional capital markets. For example, some foundations, such as Duluth LISC have used impact investing to create storefronts in Downtown Minneapolis for minority and female business owners. Also, social entrepreneurs use impact investments to “buy back the block”, meaning buying and re-vitalizing the block for those in the community at a non-inflated price. These types of investments allow marginalized groups to stay and flourish in their neighborhoods.
Impact investing gives marginalized groups opportunities for which they wouldn’t normally be considered It is quite interesting how Black women are the most educated group in America but have the least venture capital. They are also given less support in the financial world compared to their white counterparts. Foundations and other organizations can help Black people receive proper support. The traditional sources of financing have denied marginalized groups suitable access to the investment world for too long. It’s time for people to put their money where their mouth is and use their capital for justice. Create an opportunity for marginalized groups to generate wealth for their future generations. The time for change is now and that change is impact investing at the forefront.
Take Action
To learn more and dive deeper into these topics, learn more about:
“Silence in the face of evil is itself evil: God will not hold us guiltless. Not to speak is to speak. Not to act is to act.”― Dietrich Bonhoeffer
This powerful quote is how Minnesota’s Attorney General Keith Ellison opened his keynote address at the Minnesota Council on Foundations annual conference last month. As Americans, we stand for individual freedom, the right to pursue happiness, and the dignity of each person. These fundamental values are under assault. We need to muster our courage and act. Perhaps it’s reaching out to a friend with disabilities who is worried about funding cuts. Maybe it’s shopping and dining at non-traditional places and restaurants such as those found on Lake Street in Minneapolis. Or maybe it’s running for public office so we’ll have better leadership choices. Let me know what actions you’re taking in these fraught times.
Leave a Reply