Fundraising and the LGBT Community—Pitfalls and Possibility
An interview with Mickey MacIntyre of realChange Partners, LLC

	Mickey MacIntyre of realChange Partners

This interview is part one of a two-part series on how fundraisers and nonprofits can better serve lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) donors. Part two will appear in the next issue of Kaleidoscope.

Describe a worst-case scenario for an LGBT donor in terms of how he or she is treated by a fundraiser or nonprofit.

The worst-case scenario is when organizations or professional fundraisers “closet” their LGBT donors and their families. Mostly it happens out of a fear of what the reaction would be from their other donor populations.

Can you explain this further?

This often happens in recognition opportunities. A gay donor and his or her partner may make the same contribution as a heterosexual couple, but the nonprofit leaves out the partner of the major donor in the recognition of the gift. You’ll often see the profiles of major donors and the blurb about the wife/husband and kids, but the organization has decided to leave out the partner and kids of the gay or lesbian family.

Another example is if your “every member campaign” is meant to meet with every family, but you meet individually with the gay man or woman, which shows the LGBT family that it is not really accepted as a family.

The discrimination is often very subtle. An LGBT person won’t be asked to be on the board or allowed to volunteer out of fear that he or she would advocate for gay issues. Runaway youth shelters might, for example, be concerned about asking their gay donors to volunteer due to the false stereotypes around predatory behavior or fear that a gay person will somehow try to “recruit” a child into being gay.

Often organizations will not look at LGBT donors and what they bring to the table in the same way they look at others in their donor base. It’s an internalized fear on the part of the fundraiser or the organization that there would be retaliation from heterosexual donors or volunteers. Sometimes it also comes from the positive intent of trying to protect the gay or lesbian donor.

How can nonprofits better connect to the LGBT community?

It starts at the top. They need to start by having strong conversations at the board level about what it means to be inclusive. For example, if the mission of an organization is tolerance, then including gays and lesbians in the conversation is very valuable. Suppose an organization supports equity, but a fundraiser is intolerant of different types of people. This is a problem that must be addressed by the organization. You can’t have an organization putting forward one ideal and individual staff members and volunteers exercising personal belief systems that run counter to that. As a donor, I would say, “I believe in this mission, but this guy asking me for the gift doesn’t seem to want to be in the same room with me.”  This will not lead to lifelong giving.

That said, I don’t expect organizations that do not have the same world view as I do to operate with the same tolerance and inclusiveness. If it is not in the organization’s mission, then I don’t push the issue. But if you have inclusivity as part of your mission and values, then you should think strongly about what that means for the LGBT community.

Do you have any specific ideas about how a nonprofit can improve its operations to be more inclusive?

Remember gay people can’t get married except in Massachusetts, so it is more difficult to track their relationships. It has to start in your database and move out from there. Just as with heterosexual families, it is important to know the financial and philanthropic situation of all members of the household and how each relates to the organization.

Make sure your equal employment statement includes “Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity” for both staff and volunteers. Train your volunteers and staff so they are comfortable working with gay families.

Engage LGBT volunteers and staff in visible leadership positions, perhaps on the board or heading committees.

Don’t be afraid to talk to your LGBT donors and their families about what you could be doing better to build your relationship.  They might just tell you that you’re doing everything right.

Highlight ways your organization serves LGBT people in its services.  Include visible representations of LGBT families in publications.

Call homophobia as it happens and provide sensitivity training to members of the staff and volunteers. Look out for hetero-centric policies, procedures and facilities. In particular, educate yourself on gender identity expression.