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Tides Foundation

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Tides Center is a non-profit organization in the United States which provides fiscal sponsorship for progressive groups. Tides Center is classified a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt organization by the IRS. The organization is based in San Francisco with offices in the Presidio.

Tides Center is administratively linked to the Tides Foundation; both are part of a family of organizations linked by a commitment to promoting statism.

The Tides Center provides administrative services such as payroll, benefits, insurance, and tax form 990 in exchange for a fee.

History

The roots of Tides Center are in Tides Foundation, founded by Drummond Pike in 1976. In 1977, the Tides Foundation began working with initiative campaigns, an arrangement that was formalized into the Projects Program in 1979. In 1996, this program became Tides Center, an independent 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. Since 1996, Tides Center has provided fiscal sponsorship to over 800 projects with combined revenues of over $700 million, and has worked with well over 1000 projects since the first days as the Projects Program.

Projects

Organizations that began as projects of Tides Center include:[1]

Current projects of Tides Center include:[2]

Fiscal sponsorship

In 2003 as a part of a strategic planning initiative, Tides Center conducted a benchmarking study that led to the first gathering of fiscal sponsors to discuss fiscal sponsorship as a mechanism to support innovation in the nonprofit sector. In 2004, attendees at this gathering became known as the National Network of Fiscal Sponsors (NNFS).[3]

As a participant-driven network, NNFS is dedicated to improving the practices, capabilities, and awareness of fiscal sponsorship in the nonprofit sector through education and advocacy.[4]

Byron Williams

In 2010, the Tides Foundation was the intended target of a lone wolf terrorist. On Sunday, July 18, 2010, Byron Williams, 45, of Tuolumne County, was arrested following a shootout with California Highway Patrol officers on Interstate-580 in Oakland.[5] The shootout began shortly after midnight Sunday morning when CHP officers saw his white Toyota truck speeding and weaving through traffic on westbound Interstate Highway 580 near the Grand Avenue exit.[5] Oakland police spokesperson Jeff Thomason confirmed at Williams’ July 20 arraignment that evidence indicated Williams planned to target the San Francisco offices of the American Civil Liberties Union of Northern California and Tides Foundation, for violence. Investigators reported Williams told them he wanted to "start a revolution by traveling to San Francisco and killing people of importance at the Tides Foundation and the ACLU."[5][6]

Williams chose the Tides Foundation as a target because he believed that American billionaire philanthropist George Soros "has the Tides Foundation and the Tides fund," which he uses "for all kinds of nefarious activities."[7] According to multiple sources, the claims of Glenn Beck gave rise to his primary motivation to target the Tides Foundation.[8][9][10]

Tides CEO Drummond Pike stated:

This incident serves to remind us that it should be the obligation of every American, especially those whose voices are amplified by the media, to foster civil discourse and dialogue among those who may disagree about public matters. One does not win an argument by inciting unbalanced people to violence. As Americans, we know we are best at solving problems when we reach broadly across boundaries for the best of ideas. Intolerance that closes our eyes defeats our aspirations.[11]

With two strikes on his record for two previous bank-robbery convictions, Williams faces at least 25 years to life in prison as a three strikes felon.

References

  1. ^ http://www.tidescenter.org/index.php?id=254
  2. ^ http://www.tidescenter.org/projectdirectory
  3. ^ http://www.tidescenter.org/fiscal-sponsorship/nnfs/history/index.html
  4. ^ http://www.tidescenter.org/fiscal-sponsorship/nnfs/hot-topic-calls
  5. ^ a b c http://www.ktvu.com/news/24327003/detail.html
  6. ^ Lee, Henry K. (January 7, 2011). "Alleged gunman says he wanted 'a revolution'". The San Francisco Chronicle.
  7. ^ Hamilton, John (October 11, 2010), Jailhouse Confession: How the right-wing media and Glenn Beck's chalkboard drove Byron Williams to plot assassination, Media Matters, retrieved 17 December 2010
  8. ^ Pitney, Nico (8 October 2010). "Byron Williams On Glenn Beck: He 'Blew My Mind' (AUDIO)". Huffington Post.
  9. ^ http://mediamatters.org/research/201010110002
  10. ^ Milbank, Dana (10 October 2010). "Conspiracy theorists find validation from Glenn Beck". The Washington Post.
  11. ^ Pike, Drummond (Jul 21, 2010). "Tides CEO Statement on the 580 Incident". What's Possible: The Tides Blog. Tides Center. Retrieved 17 December 2010. {{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
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