Defending Democracy and Building Towards Liberation
This weekend we witnessed both an inspiring and powerful demonstration of support for democracy from the people in the streets, as well as a disturbing and tragic escalation in state-sanctioned violence.
Communities are being targeted — through ICE raids, through violence against elected officials, through investigations meant to intimidate organizations to stop the essential power-building work they are doing, and more. Violence against the people takes many forms, but it stems from this regime seeking control and exploiting their power, by any means necessary.
We are in a moment to defend democracy and freedom, and also to recognize our shared humanity.
Two of the lessons we have learned from social movements through history: 1) We must always think beyond ourselves (from local to global), the moment (from past to present), and the crisis we are in (connecting the threads of state violence), and 2) Liberation and self-determination are what sustains freedom, even as democracies struggle. Now is the time to protect and defend our communities, and to also build and create the future we want for all of us.
In philanthropy, many of us are considering how to most effectively wield our power right now. Of course, our voices are part of how we use that power. And — at Kataly, we believe that what we do is what’s most important, not just what we say.
Groups on the ground are, as always, navigating the need to block harmful actions and protect communities, while holding a vision for a truly liberated future and building towards it. As funders, the most important thing we can do is to resource those organizations swiftly and at scale.
At Kataly, we are assessing how our grantee partners and the broader social movement ecosystem are being impacted, and moving resources accordingly. We look forward to sharing more about our rapid response support in the coming weeks. Our aim is to be of service and to wield the power we have with speed, transparency, and care.
