Leading With Equity
Our Equity Vision: A community in which every person is equitably supported and thriving.
United Way of the Battle Creek and Kalamazoo Region (UWBCKR) is dedicated to building capacity and accountability into our policies, practices, and partnerships through collective collaboration with communities most affected by inequities.
Declaration and Guiding Principles for Equity & Anti-Racism at UWBCKR
These declarations reflect multiple, evolving core principles that have arisen from conversations with UWBCKR staff, board, funders, donors, and volunteers over the past several years. These declarations and principles reflect how UWBCKR aspires to embed equity and antiracism in the organization’s strategy and operations. These principles also draw from Community-Centric Fundraising’s 10 Principles to transform fundraising and philanthropy.
UWBCKR envisions these principles as changing and adapting over time, via honest dialogue and generative conflict. UWBCKR seeks to partner with individuals, groups, and organizations that commit to upholding these declarations and principles, which are fundamental to the United Way’s work. Partners include grantees, community and corporate partners, donors, board, staff, and volunteers.
UWBCKR Declarations:
- We ground our work in the core belief of our shared humanity and future. We recognize that systemic racism and white supremacy dehumanize everyone.
- To advance our mission and promote equity, our organizational leadership, staff, and volunteers will reflect the diversity of the community, while amplifying community voices, leadership, and opportunities for decision making. We are accountable to this commitment.
- As a community partner, UWBCKR creates spaces for growth, development, grace, and accountability to support individuals and organizations as they move along their equity journeys.
- Systemic racism is the root cause of the racial disparities and inequities within UWBCKR's impact investments. We are committed to applying what we know and understand regarding systemic racism to take action.
- UWBCKR is committed to dismantling systemic inequities within our community and beyond that continue to cause harm to Black, Indigenous, and other People of Color (BIPOC), Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and Queer (LGBTQ+) people, women, and people with disabilities.
