The Flames Still Burn: A Prophetic Call to Action for Philanthropy

Five days before Martin Luther King Jr.’s untimely death, he had a painful conversation with his friend and colleague Harry Belafonte. In it, Belafonte recalled King saying,

“I’ve come upon something that disturbs me deeply. We have fought hard and long for integration, as I believe we should have, and I know we will win, but I have come to believe that we are integrating into a burning house. I’m afraid that America has lost the moral vision she may have had, and I’m afraid that even as we integrate, we are walking into a place that does not understand that this nation needs to be deeply concerned with the plight of the poor and disenfranchised. Until we commit ourselves to ensuring that the underclass is given justice and opportunity, we will continue to perpetuate the anger and violence that tears the soul of this nation. I fear I am integrating my people into a burning house.”

This echo of inequality still reverberates around us, flickering and burning like embers, casting a shadow over our nation’s promise. For years there has been a goal to quickly extinguish fires and soothe injustices through quick fixes without addressing the systemic problems that caused them. But, stopping a structure engulfed in flames with just a bucket of water without understanding the type of fire, and its source, or providing an adequate amount of water to quelch the inferno, allows it to rage on and event causes it to reignite violently.

This rage makes a paradigm shift in philanthropy inevitable. As engineers of social impact, we must move beyond the part of firefighters and become arson investigators. We must investigate these fires and navigate the inconceivable web of injustice to trace discrimination, economic inequities, and institutional biases that fuel the fires of inequality. This will not be a quick fix or an easy journey. It’ll take us through hills and valleys and forks in the road where we will need to choose the path that will uncover hard trueness about our institutions and systems and our own unconscious conspiracy in maintaining the status quo. To truly extinguish the fires of inequality, we must face these realities. We must;

1. Fund deterrence, not just firefighters; Fund organizations and systems that address the roots of systemic injustice, invest in exploration that uncovers truths, build the power of the marginalized, and prioritize equity and fairness in every decision to disrupt our current traumatic and oppressive practices

2. Emphasize collaboration, not competition; Engage with different community members- leaders, residents, politicians, experimenters, and other agencies to develop comprehensive results to connected social problems.

3. Use data as a logical tool; Use data to understand the impact of interventions, move beyond outgrown strategies, and find potential solutions that disrupt oppressive systems and contribute to a more equitable society.

Martin Luther King Jr.’s metaphor of America as a house on fire goes beyond just merely integrating people; to understanding the harm and situations that our communities live in, understanding the sources of these fires, and erecting solutions that prevent them from happening again.