The Dirtbag Billionaire and the Purpose Trust

Posted on December 16, 2025 by HistPhil • Leave a comment

Editors’ Note: Dana Brakman Reiser reviews David Gelles’s Dirtbag Billionaire: How Yvon Chouinard Built Patagonia, Made a Fortune, and Gave It All Away (Simon & Schuster, 2025). In debates and conversations about corporate social responsibility and social enterprise, few players enjoy the reverence accorded to Patagonia and its founder, Yvon Chouinard. Journalist David Gelles’ new … Continue reading →

Current Events and Philanthropy / Philanthropy / Philanthropy in the News

From Chocolate to ChatGPT: What Hershey’s Century-Old Philanthropy Reveals About OpenAI’s New $130 Billion Foundation

Posted on November 13, 2025 by HistPhil • Leave a comment

Editors’ Note: Peter Kurie discusses the parallels between two American nonprofits that control major for-profit corporations: the OpenAI Foundation, on paper now the wealthiest charitable organization in the U.S., and the Hershey Trust, the subject of his 2018 book, In Chocolate We Trust. (This post has been revised to reflect greater clarity on the organizational … Continue reading →

History of Philanthropy and Conservatism / Philanthropy in the News

The New Populist Conservatism and Civil Society

Posted on March 18, 2025 by HistPhil • Leave a comment

Editors’ Note: In the first of a two-part series, Michael E. Hartmann and William A. Schambra reflect on the populist New Right’s conception and relation to civil society. Generally, Republican presidents at least since Richard Nixon have positively characterized civil society and its role in American life. Recall, for example, some of the old standbys: … Continue reading →

Current Events and Philanthropy / Philanthropy and Democracy / Philanthropy in the News

Progressive Philanthropy and “The Groups” Critique

Posted on December 19, 2024 by HistPhil • Leave a comment

Editors’ Note: HistPhil co-editor Benjamin Soskis examines the place of philanthropy within the recently surging critique of “The Groups,” the term applied collectively to progressive advocacy organizations, which some have blamed for the Democrats’ November defeat. In weeks after November 5th, amidst the maelstrom of election post-mortems, an interview that journalist Ezra Klein conducted with … Continue reading →

Philanthropy / Philanthropy and Education / Philanthropy in the News

Historicizing Ackman: Searching for Precedents of the Higher Education “Donor Revolt”

Posted on March 27, 2024 by HistPhil • 1 Comment

Editors’ Note: John Thelin and Richard Trollinger, two scholars of philanthropy and higher education, put the recent higher education “donor revolt” in historical perspective. Recent campus conflicts at elite American universities, The New York Times declared in a recent article, signal a “new politics of power” in which “wealthy donors expect money to buy a … Continue reading →

Philanthropy in the News

MacKenzie Scott, the Giving Pledge, and Rival Discourses of Billionaire Philanthropy

Posted on July 22, 2021 by HistPhil • 1 Comment

Editors’ Note: Hans Peter Schmitz, George E. Mitchell, and Elena M. McCollim introduce their research on the Giving Pledge, and analyze how one of its most prominent signatories, MacKenzie Scott, poses a challenge to the discourse surrounding philanthropy it most often advances. During the Covid-19 pandemic, MacKenzie Scott accompanied three rounds of billion-dollar donations to … Continue reading →

Current Events and Philanthropy / New Works in the Field / Philanthropy in the News

Philanthropy in the Empire of Pain

Posted on April 23, 2021 by HistPhil • Leave a comment

Editors’ Note: Benjamin Soskis reviews Patrick Radden Keefe’s Empire of Pain: The Secret History of the Sackler Dynasty. For a few weeks each summer for the last decade or so, one of my daughters has attended camp at the Smithsonian Institution. That meant that many July mornings and afternoons, when I was dropping off or … Continue reading →

History of Anonymous Giving / Nonprofit legal history / Philanthropy in the News

The Charitable Solicitation Context of Americans for Prosperity Foundation v. Beccerra

Posted on April 7, 2021 by HistPhil • Leave a comment

Editors’ note: Joseph Mead situates the pending Supreme Court case Americans for Prosperity Foundation v. Beccerra within the broader history of efforts to regulate charitable solicitation. The Supreme Court will soon decide a case with potentially significant implications for regulating nonprofits, Americans for Prosperity Foundation v. Beccerra. In the upcoming case, two nonprofits have challenged … Continue reading →

Current Events and Philanthropy / Philanthropy in the News

The Biden Partnerships Plan is Faith-Based Initiative 5.0

Posted on March 9, 2021 by HistPhil • Leave a comment

Editors’ Note: Stanley Carlson-Thies provides historical background for President Biden’s recent (re-)establishment of the White House Office of Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships. President Biden by Executive Order 14015 (Feb. 14, 2021) created a White House office to promote government partnerships with civil society organizations, both religious and secular, to maximize the effectiveness of services for … Continue reading →

Philanthropy and Democracy / Philanthropy and Historical Research / Philanthropy and Inequality / Philanthropy in the News

Movement Capture and the Long Arc of the Black Freedom Struggle

Posted on July 14, 2020 by HistPhil • 1 Comment

Editors’ Note: Responding to Ford Foundation President Darren Walker’s statement on Juneteenth that these are “[un]precedented times– and hopefully a sign of the change that’s to come,” Erica Kohl-Arenas and Megan Ming Francis ask which roles Walker and other philanthropic leaders intend or want to play in the context of the movement for Black lives; … Continue reading →

Current Events and Philanthropy / Philanthropy in the News

Trump Donated His Salary to HHS. Is that Kosher?

Posted on March 6, 2020 by HistPhil • Leave a comment

Editors’ Note: Ellen P. Aprill comments on how President Trump’s recent decision to donate his salary to the Department of Health and Human Services fits into her latest research project on the boundaries between private charitable donations and public funds. On March 3, President Trump’s Press Secretary, Stephanie Grisham, announced on Twitter that, consistent with … Continue reading →

Philanthropy in the News

Fairbairn vs. Fidelity: The Lawsuit that Reflects rising concerns about the DAF boom

Posted on June 11, 2019 by HistPhil • Leave a comment

Editors’ Note: Brian Mittendorf outlines the stakes of the recently filed lawsuit, Emily and Malcolm Fairbairn vs. Fidelity Charitable, and discusses how it reflects mounting concerns about the rise of donor-advised funds. The New York Times’ Paul Sullivan recently highlighted an ongoing and prominent lawsuit between a wealthy couple and their financial advisors. The lawsuit … Continue reading →

Current Events and Philanthropy / Philanthropy in the News

Plus ça change: The long history of questioning Charitable giving to Notre Dame

Posted on June 7, 2019 by HistPhil • 1 Comment

Editors’ Note: In light of recent controversies over private contributions to rebuild the cathedral, recently damaged by fire, Matthew Ross discusses the long history of questions about charitable giving to Notre Dame. The billion dollars pledged to repair Notre Dame de Paris stoked a public crisis of conscience. Before the smoke had cleared over the gothic … Continue reading →

Philanthropy and the State / Philanthropy in the News

The UK Civil Society Strategy and The History of State vs Philanthropic Welfare Provision

Posted on August 31, 2018 by HistPhil • Leave a comment

Editors’ Note: Against the backdrop of the UK government’s new Civil Society Strategy, Rhodri Davies provides broader historical context to UK debates on civil society, the state, and welfare needs. The UK government recently launched its major new Civil Society Strategy, billed as the first attempt in 15 years to outline a holistic vision for the relationship … Continue reading →

Philanthropy and the State / Philanthropy in the News

Giving Our Taxes: Historical Perspective on Charitable Donations as SALT Cap Work-Around

Posted on January 11, 2018 by HistPhil • Leave a comment

Editors’ Note: Shirley Tillotson offers some historical perspective on recent proposals that would allow taxpayers to make charitable donations to state and local governmental agencies as a way of dealing with new provisions in the recently passed Tax Cuts and Jobs Act that limit state and local tax (SALT) deductions. The border between tax and charity is patrolled … Continue reading →

Philanthropy and Democracy / Philanthropy and Inequality / Philanthropy in the News

Julius Rosenwald was not a Hero

Posted on June 30, 2017 by HistPhil • 6 Comments

Editors’ Note: In response to a recent SSIR piece describing Julius Rosenwald as a philanthropic hero, HistPhil co-editor Maribel Morey reflects on the distinction between an effective philanthropist and a heroic figure. “Julius Rosenwald is one of our philanthropic heroes.” This is how Bridgespan’s William Foster, Gail Perreault, and Elise Tosun begin their essay on “Ten Ways to Make … Continue reading →

From the Editors / Philanthropy in the News

Why Ford’s $1 Billion Commitment to Mission-Related Investments is a Big Deal–and a Risky One

Posted on April 5, 2017 by HistPhil • 2 Comments

Editors’ Note: HistPhil co-editor Benjamin Soskis weighs in on the Ford Foundation’s announcement that it will commit $1 billion over the next decade to mission-related investments. Today, the Ford Foundation announced that, over the next decade, it would direct $1 billion dollars from its $12 billion endowment to mission-related investments (MRI). As the foundation explains, … Continue reading →

Current Events and Philanthropy / In remembrance / Philanthropy in the News

Donor Standing and the Real Legacy of Adele Smithers

Posted on February 22, 2017 by HistPhil • Leave a comment

Editors’ Note: Brian Galle weighs in on the misunderstood legacy of heiress Adele Smithers, who passed away last week. HistPhil readers will have noticed the passing last week of Adele Smithers, the heiress and careful monitor of the charitable trust established by her late husband, R. Brinkley. The New York Times obit describes her as having … Continue reading →

Current Events and Philanthropy / Philanthropy in the News

A Matter of Trusts: Philanthropy and India’s Biggest Corporate Scandal

Posted on February 13, 2017 by HistPhil • Leave a comment

Editors’ Note: Mircea Raianu follows up on last year’s post on the Tata Trusts with historical insights on the corporate scandal that has rocked India and has implicated the nation’s largest philanthropy. In late October 2016, an extraordinary corporate scandal broke out in India. Tata, the country’s largest, most influential, and most widely respected business group, suddenly … Continue reading →

Current Events and Philanthropy / Philanthropy and the State / Philanthropy in the News

Crisis and Response: What History Tells us about the Challenges Facing UK Charities

Posted on March 11, 2016 by HistPhil • Leave a comment

Editors’ Note: Rhodri Davies continues this week’s focus on governmental reform of charities within the UK, as part of HistPhil’s forum on philanthropy and the state. The charity sector in the UK is currently going through a torrid time. A series of issues with the way charities operate and fundraise have recently come to the … Continue reading →