COVID-19 is testing the resiliency of our social fabric. In the United States, prices for food, household items, and other essentials are becoming more and more unaffordable. Unemployment has skyrocketed. Cities are reporting mile-long food distribution lines. There are growing concerns related to equitable educational attainment for poorer families and students of color. COVID-19-related hospitalizations and deaths are higher among Black, Latinx, and Native American and Indigenous people.

The root of these growing, disparate conditions didn’t begin with COVID-19, and the inequity is certainly too great for any one sector of society to fix alone. In “Reflections on lessons learned from HIV/AIDS activism,” Ambassador Schroeder Stribling says:

“Solutions on a large scale will come when every vector of our economy is persuaded that it is in their best interest to participate in fighting poverty and racism—no matter their motivation, financial or moral or both. Business, faith, government, philanthropy, the civic sector and those with lived experience most especially—we need everyone at this table.”

With this in mind, many nonprofits are stepping up to play a critical role in helping vulnerable communities obtain equitable access to services—even as they struggle with their own sustainability in such troubling times. To assist nonprofits, the Leap Ambassadors Community developed a COVID-19 Resources Page with specific actions and helpful resources. Its Inclusion Resources section identifies articles and resources that promote principles of diversity, equity, inclusion, and justice. Many of the resources offer insights for courageous and adaptive leaders committed to an even sharper focus on diversity, equity, and inclusion as they reimagine and reinvent their organizations.

The list is far from complete but growing, as ambassadors, like Christine Robinson, continue to provide credible and actionable resources, based on their individual expertise: “I do a considerable amount of work with traditionally marginalized communities. I work on environmental justice, health disparities, education, housing and numerous social determinants of health and wellbeing. My entire practice is focused on imbuing organizations, systems, and policies with equity.”

Inclusion resources to shape, aid, and inform your equitable response during COVID-19:

Race and Ethnicity

• COVID-19 & Race: Principles by PolicyLink CEO Michael McAfee – A succinct article that outlines five principles that can lead to equity and an inclusive economy
• Using a Racial Justice Lens Now to Transform Our Future – Underscores how we must move from simply pursuing racial equity to implementing a transformative vision of racial justice
• Insight Tool Pinpoints Where COVID-19 Funding is Needed Most– Learn about EQUIP, a proprietary big data platform built to measure social impact effectiveness and CUSP, which is designed to specifically evaluate the capacity of nonprofit service providers to meet the needs of the local communities they serve
• Resources for Undocumented Communities – Prepared by a group of undocumented scholars engaged in community outreach and social justice

Disability Inclusion

• Recommended resource on disability and COVID-19– These links offer a starting point for learning more about disability perspectives and responses to COVID-19
• Addressing the COVID-19 Pandemic in Populations with Serious Mental Illness– Strategies to address mental health during a pandemic
• NBF-Newsline – A free audio news service for anyone who is blind, low-vision, deafblind, or otherwise print-disabled that offers access to more than 500 publications, emergency weather alerts, job listings, and more

Mobilization

• “Novel? The Echo of AIDS in the Time of Coronavirus” – A letter from Schroeder Stribling about her personal experience as a daughter and activist
• “Support Equity” – Section of the PowerOf platform from the Gates Foundation highlights giving opportunities to fight COVID-19 with a particular emphasis on supporting Black, Indigenous and people of color, women, people with disabilities and LGBTIQ communities that are disproportionately affected by the pandemic

Other topics of interest may be found on the Leap of Reason Ambassadors Community COVID-19 Resources Page. For additional information on The Performance Imperative, a framework for social-sector excellence developed collaboratively by the Leap of Reason Ambassadors Community, visit the Leap Ambassadors website.