Choice Reviews Online · 2016 · 401 citations · 0 references
Public AffairsEconomicsNonprofit ManagementFundraisingPhilanthropySocial InequalityCharitable GivingCharitable TrustsCorporate PhilanthropyFoundation GrantsPhilanthropic FoundationsFoundationFoundation PhilanthropyHistory Of PhilanthropyPhilanthropic InequalityPhilanthropic TrustsSocial Justice PhilanthropySocial Welfare Spending
In the United States, the philanthropic sector has expanded rapidly—nearly 75,000 foundations were created in the past decade and about 5,000 more are established each year—making it one of the fastest‑growing industries and positioning large charitable organizations to replace government in social welfare while often blurring the line between altruism and profit. The article examines whether the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation’s substantial funding is effectively promoting social justice or merely perpetuating market‑based philanthropy that erodes the concept of social justice.
Nearly half of the 75,000 private foundations in the United States were created in the past 10 years. About 5,000 more US philanthropic foundations are set up each year. The amount of money placed in philanthropic trusts helps to make the charitable sector one of the fastest growing industries in the global economy. Linsey McGoey looks at this new golden age of philanthropy, in particular, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, and asks: is this money doing much good? Large charitable organizations are replacing government as the providers of social welfare while their businesses often support economic instability and compound global inequalities. The new generation of mega-donors see that there is good business in charity and ignore the division between good deeds and profits. Are we losing the idea of social justice in the face of market-based philanthropy?