Anti-Racism Reparative Fund
A Shalom Congregational Fund for Local Reparations
In fall 2022, Shalom held an anti-racism discernment process where we prioritized specific actions we could take together to repair the racist legacy ingrained in the history of our church, our local community, and our country. Shalom’s Anti-Racism Team was created to carry forward those shared commitments. Today, Shalom’s Ministry and Administrative Councils have joined the Anti-Racism Team to invite Shalomers to consider participation in one of those top priorities, to “Give money as a congregation to a reparative fund.”
What is Shalom’s Anti-Racism Reparative Fund?
Shalom has created a non-budget fund from which proceeds will be given to leaders in our local historically African American neighborhood (specifically the Northeast Neighborhood Association and the Shenandoah Valley Black Historical Project) to develop or sustain a program that will benefit their community. These organizations were selected based on existing relationships with them and input from the reparations discernment luncheon suggesting that Shalom redistribute funds locally. Shalom will not seek to control or direct the use of the money paid.
How much should I give, and when?
The team encourages Shalom members to consider giving one percent of their accumulated wealth, but each person or household would need to determine what they can contribute. (How do I calculate my net worth? Here is a tool to help with that: Nerd Wallet). The team realizes that some are already donating and distributing reparation money. If this is the case, we invite them to share how they are doing this so we get a sense of how the total congregation is working on this issue.
The money will be collected over a period of one year starting in November of 2025. All of the funds collected over the year will be disbursed in November 2026. The committee asks Shalom members and attendees to make pledges of how much they think they can contribute over the period of one year so that the recipients will have an idea of what they might expect to receive for their project. At the conclusion of the first year, the Anti-Racism Team will decide whether to extend the invitation for contributions for another year.
What if I don’t have money to give? We recognize that not everyone has the funds or much wealth at this time to participate. All are still invited to discern if there are ways you would like to join in the effort now with non-monetary contributions, or to indicate on the survey that you would like to be asked again at a later time. While financial gifts are the primary form of reparations being requested, we also want to encourage one another to be creative in continuing our collective prayers of lament, repentance, and commitment toward undoing the legacy of slavery in our church, our community, and this country.
What about reparations for groups other than descendants of slavery and those directly impacted by it? For now we have chosen to focus on this specific legacy of injustice and structural harm. We are open to considering other projects relating to similar but distinct legacies in the future!
Whether you can give now or later, or can participate financially or not, please be in touch using this form: