Letter to the Editor originally published in the Point Reyes Light
From Millicent Bogert, Amanda Eichstaedt, Donna Faure and Socorro Romo for the West Marin Coalition for Equity and Justice Steering Committee.
Are you wondering what happened to all the antiracism momentum and activity that showed up around the country in 2020? A lot is still happening here in West Marin!
First, a little backstory: a group of West Marin nonprofits came together in the summer of 2020, following the murders of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery, Tony McDade and others. We drafted the West Marin Nonprofits Equity Statement, which was signed by 47 local organizations. Through this collective action, we acknowledged our country’s systemic racism and the need to address racism and inequity in our own communities and organizations.
Signatory organizations are now known as the West Marin Coalition for Equity and Justice. Our purpose is to build diversity, equity, inclusion and racial justice within West Marin nonprofit organizations and across the community through shared learning and action. The coalition is administered by West Marin Fund as a “field of interest” fund with a range of funders, including individual donors, Marin County and fee-paying member organizations.
The members of the coalition have made the following commitments: to carry out internal work within our respective organizations to address bias and racism while advancing equity, diversity, and inclusion; to share our learning with each other for more effective action; and to collaborate as West Marin nonprofits to work with our communities in confronting systemic racism.
A steering committee supports and guides these efforts on behalf of the signatory organizations. The committee, which includes representatives from up to eight nonprofit organizations, has met regularly since 2020. Over the past few years, we’ve published a series of newsletters with updates on various community events with an equity and justice focus. We have established a training program led by Impact Launch to help increase diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging in our organizations. We partnered with West Marin Fund on a small grants program to fund initiatives growing out of the training program. And we have been hosting a drop-in book group for anyone who wants to come together to consider these themes. We also support initiatives led by other organizations, such as West Marin Community Services’ Mesa de las Abuelas dinner.
We greatly appreciate the effort and thoughtfulness that has gone into this initiative so far and would like to share how you can become involved. Any West Marin organization that signs on to the equity statement is considered a member, and you can do that through the West Marin Fund website. The coalition is not limited to nonprofits: faith organizations, local businesses and other associations are welcome. Members who pay a small annual fee are eligible for trainings, workshops and small grant programs. Individuals are welcome to join the monthly book group, which meets both online and in person.
We’d love to hear from you! Are you unsure whether your organization signed on? Do you want to learn more about the book group? Do you have an idea or a project you’d like to get off the ground? Want to join the steering committee or volunteer? Contact us at wmantiracism@gmail.com. Want to donate? Call Anna at (415) 663-9733. Please be in touch.
