A Statement From AFP Global Leadership: Honoring George Floyd’s Legacy, Reaffirming Our Commitment to Change

On the one-year anniversary of the horrific and senseless murder of George Floyd, we join professional fundraisers across the United States and around the world to honor his legacy.

AFP’s vision, since our founding in 1960, has been to stimulate a world of generosity and positive social good through fundraising best practices. Fundamental to achieving this vision are the principles of inclusion, diversity, equity and access (IDEA).

Philanthropy, by its very nature, demands fairness, justice and equity. Fundraising—as it seeks to bring people together to support a common cause, address disparities and inequities and improve the world—is an important vehicle for creating change in support of these principles. And it is because of this that we must take a good, hard look at our sector, our profession, and ourselves in order to create positive change.

The events of the past year—and the conversations and movements that have resulted—have made clear that many of the inequities facing our society are the result of long-standing systems and processes that most of us, knowingly or not, have perpetuated. We cannot create our vision of a fair and equitable society without understanding the impact of these foundational systems and working to transform them, as well as ourselves and our thinking about equity.

We will work within AFP Global and beyond to dismantle systemic racism and unjust systems and practices by centering our collective commitment to organizational goals and shared actions that support the advancement of IDEA. While the integration of IDEA into every aspect of the AFP community and the fundraising profession began years ago, grief-filled days such as this remind us of the unfortunate need to urgently usher in positive change.

As fundraisers who work in communities around the world, we know this is a pivotal moment. We will not run from it, but in fact, take strength and inspiration from all of you who are joining us on this journey and seeing your own efforts in your organization and community. No one can do this alone, and we are grateful for your dedication, input and support.

Thank you for being part of the fundraising community. Thank you for your commitment to ethical, effective and equitable fundraising. We welcome your thoughts as we continue this journey together.

Kevin J. Foyle, MBA, CFRE
Chair
Association of Fundraising Professionals

Mike Geiger, MBA, CPA
President and CEO
Association of Fundraising Professionals