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Member Spotlight – Shane Goldmith, President and CEO of Liberty Hill Foundation
- Member Spotlight
What is your vision for Liberty Hill Foundation’s work in Los Angeles?
In many ways, Los Angeles is at a crossroads. For one, L.A. is figuring out its role as a hub for resistance when so many injustices are occurring at the national level. At the same time, Los Angeles is encountering challenges that will define the future of the region, like homelessness, youth incarceration and climate change. At Liberty Hill, our guiding values are racial justice, economic justice, LGBTQ justice and environmental justice, and I think the challenge of the moment is to avoid becoming overwhelmed by the number of threats we are facing, and decide how to advance those values in concrete ways.
At Liberty Hill, we recently launched the Agenda for a Just Future, which is a policy initiative focused on stopping oil drilling next to homes and schools, fighting for a roof over every head and ending youth incarceration as we know it. Not only are each of these issues vitally important to low-income communities of color, they are campaigns that we have the power to win.
What is your vision for boys and men of color in California?
One of the pillars of our Agenda for a Just Future is ending youth incarceration as we know it—an issue that is particularly relevant to boys and young men of color, who are vastly overrepresented in the criminal justice system. Time and again we have seen that locking up young people only leads them away from healthy outcomes and diminishes their chances of future success. I want California to see our boys and men of color as assets, and to invest in the bright futures they deserve.
Through Liberty Hill’s work with the Brothers, Sons, Selves Coalition and other youth justice initiatives, we have seen the power of restorative justice and we know that boys and young men of color thrive when they have the tools to succeed.
What do you believe are the most urgent issues facing boys and men of color in California today?
Youth incarceration is not only an extremely urgent issue, it has huge consequences for the future of California’s communities of color. When boys and young men of color are locked up, it sets them on a path of lifetime consequences that can be extremely difficult to recover from.
However, ending youth incarceration is also a means to an end. The real problem is that kids—especially low-income youth of color—are being deprived of the resources and supports they need to succeed. That is because $537 million in public funding that could be supporting schools, mental health services, health care and foster care for young people is locked up in the youth incarceration system. It costs $275,000 a year just to incarcerate one youth. With the money spent on incarceration, we could give tens of thousands of L.A.’s young people a chance to thrive.
Earlier this year, Liberty Hill and several other CFBMoC member organizations made investments to transform juvenile justice in LA County. Why is this work so important? Why now?
First, I believe our budget should reflect our values. If we want our young people to succeed, regardless of their race, zip code, income level or immigration status, we have to make investments that address their needs. When our budget prioritizes education and rehabilitation over punishment, it sends a message that we care about young people and believe in their ability to succeed.
Thankfully, California has come a long way since the “tough on crime” policies that overcrowded our prisons and put punishment ahead of rehabilitation. With Proposition 47 and the legalization of marijuana, it’s becoming clear that the public supports a smarter, more compassionate approach to criminal justice, which means there is an opening to drive real change. But most importantly, our youth can’t wait. Their lives and their futures hang in the balance. It’s up to us to do everything in our power to build a better system.
How does Liberty Hill Foundation address these issues and barriers?
As part of our Agenda for a Just Future, Liberty Hill is organizing individual philanthropists and foundations to move millions of dollars toward a community organizing and advocacy initiative to end youth incarceration as we know it, and build a new youth development system in its place. We are also encouraging funders to use their social capital and their civic leadership to support the youth of color on the frontlines of these fights.
In addition to the Agenda for a Just Future, Liberty Hill’s ongoing grantmaking supports a number of groups working directly on these issues by advocating for policy change and organizing people who are directly impacted by the criminal justice system. Liberty Hill also runs leadership development programs that help people who have experienced injustice create lasting change. We train folks in everything from public speaking to nonprofit management, and also help social justice advocates get placed on government boards and commissions. Ultimately, we want to advance social change by empowering marginalized Angelenos to fight for their rights and create real solutions.
What lessons would you share with funders about supporting racial equity in our communities?
Listen to communities on the frontlines—communities who are suffering daily because of racial injustice. They know the solutions that will work for them, but they need investments that start from the ground up.
At Liberty Hill, grassroots leaders are involved in advancing racial equity in several ways. First, our grantmaking decisions are guided by a Community Funding Board, which includes community organizers who come from communities of color and work on the frontlines every day. Liberty Hill’s training programs are also led by people of color who have direct experience on the frontlines of these fights, and we use a strength-based process that directly engages our participants to design our curriculum each year. Another way Liberty Hill supports racial equity is by engaging directly in systems change work in close collaboration with our community partners. When foundations put the communities they are serving in the driver seat, doors open for more effective changemaking.
How else is Liberty Hill Foundation responding to the threats facing our communities in the current political and social landscape?
As a social justice foundation, our job is to advance our core values, but also to respond to changes in the landscape. In addition to stopping neighborhood drilling, fighting for a roof over every head and ending youth incarceration as we know it, Liberty Hill launched the Rapid Response for Young Immigrant Children Fund, which moves money quickly to organizations grappling with family separations at the border. Additionally, Our Fund for Change is making nearly $1 million in grants to community organizing groups advancing LGBTQ equality, workers’ rights, tenant protections and educational equity.
We know that nationally, Los Angeles is seen often as a beacon for social justice, yet we still have so many problems here at home. By fighting for a Los Angeles that prioritizes justice, we hope our region can become a model for other cities during these tumultuous times.
Homepage: https://www.libertyhill.org/
Twitter: @LibertyHill