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Growing up a Black girl in the South, Crystal’s survival depended upon her navigating social hierarchy, where she had to fight to be seen, heard, and taken seriously. Despite the fact that both of her parents were professionals, Crystal’s family experienced racial terrorism that endangered their existence and stripped away generational wealth. Early on in her life, Crystal committed herself to naming and correcting that injustice for all communities experiencing anti-Blackness, exploitation, and oppression.
During her 30+ years of philanthropic and nonprofit experience, Crystal was part of the founding teams of five start-up foundations and has directed billions of dollars to worthy causes. Rejecting business-as-usual, Crystal has led initiatives to transform philanthropy, most recently at the Libra Foundation in San Francisco. After George Floyd's murder in 2020, Crystal launched the Democracy Frontlines Fund, a $75M fund which was joined by 14 other foundation partners committed to redressing injustice.
Prior to Libra, Crystal served as CEO of the Blue Shield of California Foundation, where she spearheaded work to achieve universal health coverage. She was also part of the founding team at The California Wellness Foundation, where she led a groundbreaking initiative to shift youth violence prevention from a criminal justice issue to a public health effort. Crystal currently serves on the boards of Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors, Democracy Fund, Essie Justice Group, and Community Change. She frequently writes and publishes on leading edge topics in philanthropy, and Inside Philanthropy named Crystal “2021 Foundation Leader of the Year."
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