On Rejecting Grant Money

Renters Action Network neither pursues nor accepts grant money. This policy confuses some, surely free money would only benefit us? We hope to clarify the cost of this funding and why we refuse to pay it. 

First, for ourselves, funding is not that tight. We do not fight with money, but with people organized and united. Our expenses are gas, paper, ink, etc. And are all achievable through contributions and fundraising. We stand on our own feet, not the government’s or some non profit. 

Second we must address the real cost. Grant money is typically tied to many stipulations. How your organization must be structured, what activities it engages in, and what money can be spent on. As an organization we hold that the ultimate solution to homelessness and the robbery of rent is revolution and our interests are fundamentally contrary to the grant giver(the US Government). The cost of the grant money is our political independence and our political principles. Rather than aid our work, grant money would halt our work and transform it into its opposite. We would become an organization which supports the interests of a landlord and investor owned government and not one which fights it. 

We also urge other activist organizations to consider our reasons for not accepting grant money. We do not know the specifics of your organization and do not seek to make blanket statements without thorough investigation, but we wager that most organizations of some revolutionary nature only stand to lose their fundamental purpose by accepting grants.