Anti-Racism RFP - Posted 7/31

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Background:  

BHT was founded on the principle that when we step back and let local community lead, we find the best and most sustainable solutions to some of our most complex problems. A fundamental part of our equity journey is coming to terms with the understanding that we live in a white-dominant culture built upon patterns of behavior that positioned white people to dominate positions of power while perpetuating avoidable and unjust health outcomes for people of color for over 400 years. We acknowledge the presence of systemic racism and white-supremacy culture at play in the policies and culture that governs our work. We must be intentional in our commitment to support the voices of Black, Indigenous, and people of color or else we risk perpetuating patterns of white-supremacy culture.   

 

Opportunity: 

We formally adopted an organizational policy acknowledging racism as a public health crisis and deepening our commitment to equity and anti-racist work. To support this commitment we are releasing $1 million of our Community Resiliency Fund in a Request For Proposal process to address racism and prioritize awarding dollars to organizations led by and serving Black, Indigenous, and people of color.
 

Goals: 

  • Fund proposals that address and/or prevent impacts of systemic racism 

  • Fund opportunities to strengthen organizations led by and serving communities impacted by systems of oppression, specifically prioritizing opportunities to fund organizations led by Black, Indigenous, and people of color 

 

What should proposals address? 

Proposals should show us how being awarded the funding would help you address the impacts of racism within the population you work with. Funding can be used for new or existing programs or ideas.

We intentionally chose not to provide examples of potential projects because our only expectation is that communities know best what works. We are excited to consider whatever it is you are thinking. If you are interested in talking though an idea with BHT staff before submitting, please contact Vivian@betterhealthtogether.org.

*BHT uses the term impacted communities to refer broadly to all groups that have been impacted by systems of oppression, such as Black, Ingenious, people of color, LGBTQA2S+, disability, justice involved, low income, undocumented, refugee/immigrant people, and more groups that face inequity. Recognizing how our intersecting identities connect, it is important to call out that while white people may experience some of these forms of oppression, this experience is not the same as racism and cannot be racialized for them. A white person experiencing discrimination because of their disability does not have to consider how their race might have influenced their treatment (although if they are doing their anti-racist work, they should). In contrast, a black person with a disability in this example does not get the privilege of separating their experience of racism and the experience of ableism.  

Ready to get started?

Check out the Letter of Interest Form below to learn more about the application process and timeline.