President Obama
November 6, 2008Tuesday’s election begins a new chapter in American history. What will this chapter bring to the nonprofit sector?
Here are a few thoughts:
Increased participation in the recently concluded election process could translate into a sustained interest in the public affairs of the country, with young people, ethnic minorities and others being inspired to public service in larger numbers.
So much for the concern that there won’t be enough younger nonprofit leaders to replace aging baby boomers. I was never too worried about this, but now I believe that Obama will motivate large numbers of young people to join our sector.
Community organizing will gain the respect it deserves – after the unkind and unfounded characterization of COs by the Republican VP candidate – what was her name? I think CO has been vindicated as a profession. After all, what was it that won Obama the election, if not the most effective community organizing drive in our history?
Health care – if he can somehow get past the economic collapse our new president will face, we can expect health insurance for all children, at a minimum.
A partnership between the federal government and nonprofits. Obama understands both pieces of the social puzzle, and will welcome the appropriate role of nonprofits in our society.
That’s it for a start, anyone have further thoughts?
Tags: nonprofit
November 16th, 2008 at 12:34 pm
Yes, the election of Obama is a great affirmation of the power of really good community organizing. But I’m not convinced that we’ll see greater excitement for community service among young people. Turns out that the participation of young voters this election was no more than it has been in recent elections — only they supported Obama at a much higher rate than other recent Democrats. Only time will tell if Obama can maintain a high level of support and a focus on a long-range vision as he transitions from election to governing.
November 18th, 2008 at 11:30 am
Given the path that President-elect Obama has chosen in his life, his passions appear to lie in urban renewal, service, education and poverty eradication (at home and abroad). A recent article in the Chronicle on Philanthropy http://philanthropy.com/free/articles/v20/i14/obama.htm provides some perspective on where things might go after January 20, 2009. He and Michele Obama’s largest donation ($50,000) in 2007 went to the United Negro Fund. Second in line was CARE International and third was their church. I think we will see large investments in areas I mentioned above, encouraging innovative approaches and partnerships. I think all the children that have been left behind in our current education programs will no longer have to wait for that extra investment they need to do well in school. I think model programs that are working in urban ghettos and corners of the world we don’t even know about will be replicated and expanded. Service in our communities and abroad will take on a whole new appeal. So what does this mean to the nonprofit sector? If you are engaged in work in any of these areas, the change that we need to rebuild the world has finally arrived. Now we must rely on our creativity and innovation to sustain this change regardless of who leads our country in future decades.
Mary