Foundation’s getting the message, “fund overhead, not just projects?”
[I’ve been sick for two days, so I’m going to have to look at this later… annoyingly, and probably deliberately, the article doesn’t limit the numbers cited to foundation money, but freely mixes in mention of funds raised from the public at large, so I’m not clear on exactly how much money actually came from foundations, and what it funded… but it sounds like at least a few foundations have gotten the message that overhead and staffing needs to be funded, not just projects. Of course, when you’re reading news on your side that is written by the opposition, you’re obligated to take everything with a grain of salt. -Thomas]
Foundation Cash Funds Antiwar Movement
By Julia Duin
Washington Times | April 3, 2003
The American antiwar movement is decked out with all the elements of the counterculture, but it is getting some very establishment funding.
In a few months, foundations and donors have kicked in millions of dollars to help antiwar groups stage demonstrations, take out expensive newspaper and TV ads, maintain Web sites, hire and pay staff, and lease office space in high-rent New York, Washington and San Francisco locales.
Most work under the umbrella of sympathetic “fiscal sponsors,” groups with tax-exempt status that have also lent out staff and office space. For instance, Code Pink Women for Peace, a feminist movement known for its pink clothing and awarding of “pink slips,” or pink lingerie, to legislators they deem pro-war, operates under the aegis of Global Exchange, a San Francisco organization with a $4.2 million budget.
Code Pink co-founder Medea Benjamin, a director for Global Exchange, says they are paying a bargain $400 a month for a cubicle office at 15th and H streets in the District. More space for Code Pink is on loan from two organizations down the hall, the National Organization for Women and the Institute for Policy Studies.
[…]
