"I am spending it on myself": Black women in philanthropy

Jul 26

I’ve had the privilege of going to school. If you’re reading this, you probably did too. Today’s story of generosity comes from someone who had to drop out in sixth grade.

Oseola McCarty is one of four black women in philanthropy profiled in a recent article in the Nonprofit Journal of Philanthropy. https://nonprofitquarterly.org/black-women-in-philanthropy-the-art-of-everyday-giving-as-activism/

Oseola McCarty

McCarty was born in 1908 and had to leave school in grade 6 to care for her aunt. Her story spoke to me because my grandmothers didn’t get to go school very long either.

McCarty worked as a washerwoman, one of the few occupations available to a black woman in Mississippi at that time. It’s difficult for me, a privileged white women, to imagine how hard she must have worked. Doing laundry on that scale and for many decades - she only retired in 1994. She lived frugally, never bought a car and saved as much as she could.

Washerwoman leaves $150,000 gift to university

The headlines from 1995 declared: Washerwoman leaves $150,000 gift to university. McCarty wanted the “satisfaction of giving while living”, according to the NPQ article. She died in 1999.

It’s been over 25 years since McCarty’s gift created a scholarship fund at the University of Southern Mississippi to help students in need, particularly African-American students. The photo is from a statue created to honour the 25th anniversary of her gift, which has inspired many further donations.