Like Starbucks drinks and Mariah Carey songs, philanthropy happens year-round but truly peaks during the holiday season. Thanksgiving and “Giving Tuesday” are organic launching points for the end-of-year push: The final six weeks of the calendar year represents many nonprofits’ last chance to bring in their annual budgets; as much as 30 percent of all charitable gifts in the United States are made in December.
Today, though, American giving looks less like a diverse potluck and more like a lavishly catered meal with a tight guest list. The principle of universal participation has given way to “megadonor” billionaires, several of whom have started to tout such philanthropic accomplishments as a defense of their wealth, particularly in the face of aggressive recent taxation proposals.
The decline of non-elite giving isn’t entirely new. Since 2000, low-dollar and mid-level donors have gone down by about 2 percent each year. These givers have traditionally made up the bulk of solicitation lists, but as real wages have stagnated and cost of living has increased, many have less discretionary funds to give to the causes dear to them. The ultrarich, however, have plenty, and they’re increasingly using their charitable giving as a political cudgel.
