Who is SC Fair Share?

In November of 1986, activists from across South Carolina came together at the invitation of Grassroots Leadership, the Charlotte-based organizing center.  Those activists were looking at whether a statewide organization was needed. 

Those who came together knew that community organizing had been successful in our state.  In many communities across the state, various constituencies were coming together to fight local battles.  What was missing was a state level vehicle for joint action.

As they met and talked, the group also saw the need for training and technical assistance to existing and new groups and expanding the pool of experienced community organizers.  The name South Carolina Fair Share was taken from North Carolina Fair Share, which had recently been created with the assistance of Grassroots Leadership.

From these meetings, South Carolina Fair Share was born, with John Ruoff, who had just stepped down as Executive Director at Fairfield United Action, as the first staff person and eventually Executive Director. 

From the beginning, Fair Share took a two-pronged approach.  The first involved statewide issue advocacy.  Over the years, that included a broad array of issues; initially we opposed efforts to undermine our tort system, fought for fair automobile insurance and helped pass legislation to outlaw rape within marriage.  In the mid-1990s, Fair Share expanded those issues to include welfare reform, predatory lending and health care access and affordability. 

The more we worked on health care access and affordability, the more we came to see budgets and the taxes that fund them as central to the ability to fund health care.  Fair Share became a leading voice on budget and tax issues, pushing to increase the cigarette tax, arguing for fair tax policies, opposing the sales tax for property tax swap in Act 388, refocusing the General Assembly from spending caps to rainy day funds and bringing folks together to oppose cutting vital services rather than taking a balanced approach to serve South Carolina families by increasing revenues as well.  Over the years, Fair Share worked across party lines and built and worked in diverse coalitions.

At the same time, Fair Share worked to build up South Carolina organizations and to provide tools for activists that go beyond Fair Share’s particular policy issues.  Fair Share has developed training designs that are now used across America, such as Lovely Acres: A Community Empowerment Simulation and Capturing Your Legislator’s Vote.  We trained and consulted with numerous groups.  We helped start the SC Association of Nonprofit Organizations to strengthen the sector, and trained dozens of staff and board through SCANPO.  Our NonProfits 101:  A Guide for Board and Staff of New and Smaller 501(c)(3) Organizations is relied upon by organizations large and small in South Carolina.  Our Legislative Updates, published weekly when the General Assembly is in session, has proved invaluable to activists across the state, covering just about everything but fishing bills.

Through four Executive Directors, multiple dedicated staff members, and countless passionate citizen advocates from around the state, Fair Share was able to make great strides over almost a quarter of a century in advancing the health, safety and well-being of everyday people in the Palmetto State!