Mischaracterizing public nonprofits hurts communities
MNA CEO Adam Jespersen
As the executive director of the Montana Nonprofit Association, a membership association that supports more than 850 organization across the state, I’m dismayed by multiple recent incidents of political leaders and influencers casting local public charities across Montana as “dark money” groups and as organizations at the center of broader political flashpoints.
The nonprofit sector functions on trust – trust from families and households that organizations will respond to needs, trust from funders and supporters that resources are being stewarded well, and trust from the broader community to recognize that nonprofits can and should lean into spaces where government and business can’t or shouldn’t.
When local public charities, who are run by and supported by your neighbors, friends and colleagues, are cast as something they are not and as something nefarious and disreputable, trust is eroded and the social contract between nonprofits and their community is put at risk.
Become a Subscriber!
You have read all of your free articles this month. Select a plan below to start your subscription today.
Already a subscriber? Login
