Look, I understand that geopolitics are kind of messy and complicated. I get that focusing on mission-related messaging feels more sensible. Maybe you just caught your breath after Minneapolis. But it seems really wimpy, outright cowardly, if you can’t put together a statement that says, more or less:
War ruins countless lives and we shouldn’t be in the business of it.
I don’t expect much these days, but I do think that openly standing against military action that the vast majority of Americans opposes is not going to offend your donor base. (And if it does: do you need their money? Do you?)
But the industry has already shown their ass on world affairs. It was bad enough trying to issue a statement after October 7th that said nothing more than, again, “war is bad.” At the time I worked at a nonprofit focused on children’s writing programs, one with a Palestinian-American author on an advisory council no less, and issuing a statement that mourned the innumerable stories children wouldn’t be able to read, tell, share, and dream was considered a step too far for the board of directors. Even the threat of withholding a major family donation wasn’t enough to sway them. “Not our lane,” they ruled, as if youth in Texas were the only ones who deserved public mourning.
Boards should be treated like eczema: a chronic condition that, with the right treatment, can be mollified into only an occasional flareup. It’s also easier to say “sorry” than “may I.” If you’re waiting for a handful of what’s-their-names who only show up for a quarterly call to suddenly come around to your position on issuing statements about world affairs, you need to get creative. (You also need a new board.) If the holdup is coming from org leadership, however, I have to wonder when, exactly, you’ll ever feel like your mission is connected to the wider world.
Your Nonprofit Sucks 
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