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The problem of systemic bias in CRA audits

For the last five months, the Senate hearings on Islamophobia have featured testimony about systemic discrimination in the Canada Revenue Agency’s auditing practices of Canadian Muslim charities. In a healthy democracy, such revelations should cause public outrage and spur urgent corrective action by government. Neither is likely to occur, say lawyers Faisal Kutty and Faisal Bhabha.

Gender-based philanthropy: Where did we go wrong?

Toronto Foundation’s Nicola Hives reflects on her organization’s three-year learning journey via the Trust Collective, a group of women philanthropists and community organizations serving women and girls. “We made a lot of mistakes,” she says, but they also learned some important lessons. First and foremost: “We can’t let our ambition to make a difference get the better of us. Thoughtfulness and partnering with community are everything.”

Too many to name: On the pleasures and perils of volunteering in the arts

Artist Isabella Stefanescu’s essay about volunteering in the arts focuses on Kim Jernigan’s work with The New Quarterly as a pivotal example. As with other sectors, volunteering in the arts, where volunteers often sign up for the long haul, has been losing ground, and the pandemic has further disrupted volunteering at a time when the cultural sector is facing historically high job vacancies.

Philanthropy must challenge misogynoir

The term “misogynoir” refers to a particular form of discrimination against Black women, girls, and gender-diverse people. As we mark Black History Month, the Canadian Women’s Foundation’s Paulette Senior calls for those with philanthropic clout to vie for better work, invest in better futures, and join the uproar for policy-making that actively includes Black women and gender-diverse people.

Systemic Islamophobia by the CRA that targets the heart of the community is the worst kind of all

Over the past year, academics and policy experts have been reporting on what appear to be discriminatory practices in the CRA’s audits of Muslim-led charities. Contributor Memona Hossain suggests six ways the sector can help confront this systemic flaw and work with the Muslim charitable sector to build a strong, authentic, and unapologetic Muslim narrative.