By Chris Sunderlin
“We already have too many nonprofits.”
It sounds pragmatic. Responsible. Strategic.
It’s none of those things.
What we have too many of are people who use the language of efficiency to protect control. What we have too many of are gatekeepers, not builders.
Let’s be honest about what’s really being said when foundations repeat that line.
They are not worried about duplication of services.
They are worried about duplication of influence.
Because when a new nonprofit forms, especially one rooted in the lived experience of the neighborhood, it threatens existing power structures. It asks questions. It disrupts comfortable narratives. It exposes gaps.
And that’s inconvenient.
