Decolonizing Wealth, Second Edition

Decolonizing Wealth is a provocative analysis of the dysfunctional colonial dynamics at play in philanthropy and finance. Award-winning philanthropy executive Edgar Villanueva draws from the traditions from the Native way to prescribe the medicine for restoring balance and healing our divides.

Though it seems counterintuitive, the philanthropic industry has evolved to mirror colonial structures and reproduces hierarchy, ultimately doing more harm than good. After 14 years in philanthropy, Edgar Villanueva has seen past the field's glamorous, altruistic façade, and into its shadows: the old boy networks, the savior complexes, and the internalized oppression among the "house slaves," and those select few people of color who gain access. All these funders reflect and perpetuate the same underlying dynamics that divide Us from Them and the haves from have-nots. In equal measure, he denounces the reproduction of systems of oppression while also advocating for an orientation towards justice to open the floodgates for a rising tide that lifts all boats. In the third and final section, Villanueva offers radical provocations to funders and outlines his Seven Steps for Healing.

With great compassion--because the Native way is to bring the oppressor into the circle of healing--Villanueva is able to both diagnose the fatal flaws in philanthropy and provide thoughtful solutions to these systemic imbalances. Decolonizing Wealth is a timely and critical book that preaches for mutually assured liberation in which we are all inter-connected.

“Only a truthful reckoning of our history of colonization can inform the transformation of our extractive economic systems. Recognition, repair, and transformation are not only moral imperatives—but they will also finally and truly benefit us all. Edgar Villanueva knows this deeply and is leading the way.”
—Kat Taylor, philanthropist and cofounder of Beneficial State Bank
 
“If we are to escape the insidious hold racism has on our society, we must be intentional about truth and reconciliation. In Decolonizing Wealth, Edgar lays a foundation that not only explains the history of wealth and racism but also provides a pathway to healing that we all need.”
—Ibram X. Kendi, National Book Award–winning author of Stamped from the Beginning and How to Be an Antiracist

“Decolonizing Wealth is a call to action for all who seek real, meaningful progress. If we want to see the kinds of change, unity, and radical generosity that we know are possible, we must reckon with the systems that continue to perpetuate the racial wealth gap and change them from the root up. We need healing, we need hope, we need solidarity, and in this book, Edgar has provided the blueprint.”
—Asha Curran, CEO of GivingTuesday
 
“Due to years of detrimental federal Indian policy and discriminatory economic systems, Native American communities have been marginalized and left out of the economic opportunity experienced by other Americans. Edgar Villanueva offers a new vision and an Indigenous perspective that can put us on a better path. Everyone should read Decolonizing Wealth, especially those who control the flow of resources in government, philanthropy, and finance.”
—LaDonna Harris (Comanche), politician, activist, and founder of Americans for Indian Opportunity
 
“Edgar is an incredible thinker and activist. His work is fueling efforts across the globe to face necessary truths about history and to take reparative actions. Everyone should read this book to understand mutual liberation and the powerful and necessary ways that we can heal ourselves, our communities, and our world.”
—Matt McGorry, actor, activist, and cofounder of Inspire Justice
 
“Decolonizing Wealth offers an arrow to pierce the status quo. It outlines a Native-generated constellation of insights and pathways toward being in right relationship with each other through exploring and amplifying the inherent power and resilience of Native Peoples and ways that the philanthropic sector can heal, learn, and grow—and ultimately can serve individual and collective liberation from centuries of oppression. While the heart of the revolution for justice is not dependent on philanthropic support, there can be a powerfully effective role for mindful philanthropy to respectfully contribute to the reimagining and actualization of a more just world for future generations.”
—Tia Oros Peters (Shiwi), CEO, Seventh Generation Fund for Indigenous Peoples
 
“Decolonizing Wealth is a transformative love letter to humanity. As Edgar says, all of our suffering is mutual and all of our healing is mutual. If we are to have true belonging and justice in our lives and public spaces, then we all must heal—and this book provides a wisdom-led guide on how that can be achieved.”
—Dawn-Lyen Gardner, actor, activist, and founder of Belong
 
“Villanueva has challenged the status quo and held a mirror up to the white supremacist philanthropic structures and constructs that perpetuate inequity in society today while offering a hand of healing and justice. This book and Villanueva’s leadership are very important for this nation as we head into an era of repair that has the potential to build a pathway forward for true transformation and equity.”
—Nick Tilsen (Oglala Lakota), President and CEO, NDN Collective
 
“By anchoring the solutions to America’s ills in the wisdom and knowledge of its original people, Edgar challenges all of us working in the nonprofit and philanthropy sectors to analyze how our nation’s history of racism and disenfranchisement has infected its financial and giving institutions. I strongly recommend this book as a key resource for funders and advocates to ensure their investments are truly equitable and benefiting the lives of people and communities of color.”
—Heather McGhee, author, political commentator, and former President, Demos
 
“Edgar’s book is essential reading toward deeply rethinking the role of wealth and philanthropy in our polarized times. Decolonizing Wealth is both profoundly personal and powerfully practical in how to reweave a broken system and begin to repair the deep wounds from extracted wealth, disconnection, and concentrated power. This book points the way toward how we should rewire philanthropy as part of building a humane and connected society of vulnerability, resilience, and genuine abundance.”
—Chuck Collins, Senior Scholar, Institute for Policy Studies, and author of The Wealth Hoarders
 
“Edgar Villanueva has broken through the tired jargon of philanthropy-speak and written a fresh, honest, painful, and hopeful book, grounded in his own truths and Native traditions, about his experiences in foundations, a powerful sector with too many vestiges of colonialism and white supremacy. He offers some radical thinking about what it would take to bring about a world where power and accountability shifted and communities controlled the resources vital to their strength and futures.”
—Gara LaMarche, former President, Democracy Alliance; former President, Atlantic Philanthropies; and former Vice President and Director of US Programs, Open Society Foundations
 
“Villanueva takes us on a powerful journey of both personal and historical reflection regarding how to understand not only the source of our wealth but the importance of considering that source as we develop our approaches to addressing the central challenges of our age. A solid offering with important insights for us all!”
*—Jed Emerson, author of The Purpose of …