President's Letters

From one president to many others,

Once again, I write heartbroken, this time over the massacre of 50 Muslim brothers and sisters in Christchurch, New Zealand. We join that nation in mourning their souls and celebrating their lives.

I am also angry. The world bore witness to this horrific act of violence, livestreamed on social media platforms that have been enabling the hate. President Trump said he doesn’t think white nationalism is a growing threat. I vehemently disagree.

The truth is that hate crimes are rising and hate groups are at a record high. Data from U.S. justice officials also show a significant increase in extremist violence. Here in the U.S., our communities are still suffering from horrific terror inflicted by white nationalists, including the mass shootings at the Oak Creek gurdwara in Wisconsin, the Tree of Life synagogue in Pittsburgh and the Emanuel AME Church in Charleston, as well as violence at the 2017 Unite the Right march in Charlottesville, Virginia. White nationalism is a global trend, impacting societies as diverse as Poland, Italy, Israel, and more.

If we have the privilege of being a leader, be it president of a country or an organization, we need to see the problem for what it is and commit to standing with those brave enough to confront it. I join our partners in calling out white nationalism for what it is – a terror movement grounded in centuries of white supremacy. A movement that is undermining democracy and our shared values of pluralism, compassion, and fairness.

We need only to look at the example of New Zealand’s Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern to know what courageous leaders do at times like these. Our shared humanity is what unites us, and we must work to bridge these divides and face these threats with love and compassion.

We must count it, condemn it and confront it.

At the Nathan Cummings Foundation, we have grown increasingly concerned about white nationalism. In the last three years, we targeted new and increased grantmaking to support partners that track extremist activity, train communities and movement leaders about the manifestations of white supremacy – including antisemitism, racism, xenophobia, and religious bigotry of all forms – and build powerful movements of people organizing to defend our democracy and hold our leaders accountable.

From one foundation president to another, I urge you to add your voice to collective, clear-eyed action to move us from tragedy to transformation. We must commit ourselves to both bearing witness and to supporting bold leadership that is calling out white nationalism and the violence it unleashes.

We must denounce policies that encourage or coddle white nationalists. We cannot forget that a ban on Muslim travelers is still in place, or that in any given year, dozens of anti-Muslim bills are introduced in state legislatures and municipal governments. White nationalism can show up in policy and practice in any number of institutions, including police departments, polling places, courts, schools, banks, and more. And we must hold accountable the social platforms that are, quite literally, profiting from the spread of hate.

Together, we can #deactivate hate. At NCF, we are inspired by the work of our grantee partners and urge you to join us.

• Raise the alarm about growing white nationalism. Western States Center, Political Research Associates, and the Anti-Defamation League are providing research, analysis, and training to help the country understand white nationalism, so we can see the threat for what it is and push back effectively.
• Fight back in radical solidarity. Hate threatens all of us, but we are stronger when we work together across multiple communities and identities. Organizations like the Pillars Fund, Bend the Arc, Faith in Action, Jews for Racial and Economic Justice, New Israel Fund, and T’ruah are using their collective voice to condemn hate and stand in unity with all those targeted by it.
• Build the political and economic power of marginalized communities, and fight against policies that institutionalize white nationalism, like Poor People’s Campaign, Community Change, National Domestic Workers Alliance, Mijente, NAACP and Jolt Initiative.
• Grow and nurture a culture that can generate and hold a world where all flourish. Auburn Seminary, the Revolutionary Love Project, and the Faith Matters Network are building the possibility of a world repaired and healed.
• Call on social media and technology companies to tackle hate on their platforms. Partners like Color of Change, Center for Media Justice, Action Center on Race & the Economy, and Interfaith Center on Corporate Responsibility are pushing corporations to curb hate on their platforms through campaigning, shareholder and investor organizing, and other strategies.

Under our watch, no one should be able to argue credibly that white supremacy and nationalism aren’t threats to our democracy, our economic security, and the health and vitality of the social fabric of our communities.

This is the moment for philanthropy to come together. We hope you will join us later this spring when we will convene, with our partners, a Philanthropic Roundtable to discuss the threat white nationalism poses to social justice and democracy, issues which we all care so deeply about.

Later this week, Muslim communities all over the world will once again gather in mosques to attend Friday prayers. Jewish communities will attend synagogues. Churches of all denominations will welcome people of all backgrounds together. Evil acts designed to drive us into hiding, to isolate us from our communities, and to punish us for our faith or race will never ultimately succeed. The best way to honor all those lost to violence is to stand powerfully against hate, bigotry, and white nationalism – and just as powerfully for love, acceptance, justice, and our shared humanity.

The Nathan Cummings Foundation stands alongside all of our partners and grantees in the United States and around the world. Count it, condemn it, confront it. Together we can #deactivatehate.

In hope,

Sharon Alpert
President & CEO
Nathan Cummings Foundation