Greeting readers! This week’s Leadership newsletter marks my return from parental leave for the birth of our first child, a beautiful baby girl. A heartfelt thanks goes to my NPQ colleagues, in whose more-than-capable hands I was able to leave the newsletter.

I can’t help but feel the contrast between these last weeks of parental magic at home and the peril, precariousness and, really, violence that has continued to beset our sector. 

And let’s not kid ourselves: The onslaught is far from over. In addition to the shocking cuts to funding to countless nonprofits serving our communities, the coercion of educational institutions, the executive orders and memos threatening persecution of nonprofits that don’t align with the administration’s goals, there’s what Rick Cohen, of the National Council of Nonprofits (one of several groups spearheading the legal resistance to these measures) called “the massive shoe” yet to drop when we talked recently.

That “massive shoe” would be anticipated federal orders to implement the Trump administration’s stated goal of stripping (non-aligned) organizations of their tax-exempt status—their status as nonprofits. 

We will continue covering these crucial issues, and I invite you readers to join the conversation and write me with pitches, thoughts, critiques, or just to say hi, at [email protected]. 

This week’s Leadership newsletter offers a nice sample of the different kinds of conversations NPQ seeks to foster and facilitate. First, Hiram Williams Figueroa reports from an annual conference in Puerto Rico that aims to connect Black philanthropic leaders and knowledge creators throughout the Americas. Then, Roosevelt Institute and Roosevelt Forward Vice President Katie Kirchner explores how to build lasting youth political infrastructure. Then, a clip from our recent premium webinar, “A Board’s Bold Leap: Radical Change and the Power of Trust.” Finally, we invite you to this month’s webinar, “Ask the Nonprofit Lawyer: Protecting Your Organization Amid Heightened Scrutiny”—your opportunity to get legal insights in plain language about key red flags; and practical tools to mitigate legal risk and protect your nonprofit organization, team, and impact. Join us on May 27. Early bird registration ends May 23.  

Isaiah Thompson 
Leadership Editor, NPQ