The color of money: what Emily's List did for women, America's Fund wants to do for people of color.

Hailed by many as the best new idea in politics for the 1990s, America's Fund is a new resource for candidates of color that could change the face of government leadership. Created last spring--and modeled after Emily's List, a powerful fundraising effort for female Democrats--America's Fund focuses its support on minorities seeking public Office. Its ethnically diverse board of directors also wants a government that represents a broad range of issues, including increased support for small and minority businesses, universal health care and urban revitalization.

Michael A. Brown, the fund's political director and a Washington, D.C.-based attorney, says he learned from his father, Commerce Secretary Ron Brown, that "politics should not be a spectator sport, whether that means running for office, voting or standing on the street corner to keep drug dealers out of your community."

Emily's List, which began in 1985, helped make 1992 a year in which more women were elected to office than ever before. By routing members' donations to selected campaign coffers across the country, Emily's List and other political action committees (PACs) enable members to play a role in elections outside their respective voting districts.

America's Fund hopes to duplicate that strategy by helping people of color mount winning campaigns and mobilizing disenfranchised minorities into action. The Washington, D.C.-based organization's first fundraiser was held last july, and by mid-November contributions amounted to almost $40,000. Members join for $100 and agree to donate that same amount to two endorsed candidates during each two-year election cycle. After reviewing a candidate's chances for victory and position on the issues, America's Fund will recommend her or him to its national network of contributors who, in turn, select for themselves who to support. The fund will then send each candidate all the contributions received on his or her behalf in one chunk--a concept known as "bundling." A controversial loophole in campaign finance laws, bundling allows PACs to present candidates with large amounts of money despite contribution limitations for both individuals and organizations.

Though ethnic minorities make up roughly 30% of the U.S. population, they hold less than 10% of the nation's highest elective offices. "America's Fund may prove to be the best way to ensure that America's leadership looks like America," says Senator Carol Moseley-Braun (D-Ill.), who is among the established politicians in support of the fund.

For more information, contact America's Fund, 2117 L Street, NW, Suite 310, Washington, DC 20037; 202-828-0744.