In Season 6 of the Quakers Today podcast, host Peterson Toscano is joined by new co-host Diana Yañez, a certified financial planner and convinced Quaker. Together, they move “into the wallet” to explore money not just as personal math, but as a spiritual practice and communal responsibility. Over the next several issues, this limited-run column will highlight key insights from the episodes in addition to sharing bonus stories that reflect the four main themes of the series: relational finance, reparative economies, Quaker values and capitalism, and personal and systemic stewardship.
In April’s premiere episode, Peterson and Diana introduce the concept of “the priesthood of all believers, economics.” They believe that every Friend has a role in discerning where money goes, rather than leaving it to the “high priests of Wall Street.” They also open up about their own personal histories with money.
Diana Yañez: My introduction to finance was back while I was in college. It was 2007, and all of these major corporations were getting bailed out because of the subprime mortgage crisis while my mom was actually going through a foreclosure. So I saw this huge dissonance between the experts and what I saw in my own community. And that just left me feeling like, “Finance? Gross.” However, over time, I realized that there was a way for me to work in this industry—for me to create positive change and actually help people regardless of their level of wealth.
Peterson Toscano: My money biography also begins in college. Decades ago, I worked for two of the richest companies in history: American Express and Exxon. But I wasn’t an executive. I was involved with food as a server. Every day I had to put on this white tuxedo with black trousers, and I served meals to the executives of these two companies and even to the board of directors. When I was done with that job in the morning and at lunchtime, I went uptown in New York City to work with youth at an after-school program, which was the job I really loved and was a job I would have done for free.
Throughout the season, listeners will hear from over 20 voices from across the Quaker world, including activists, treasurers, and historians, who have been wrestling with the tension of living out their values through finance.
- Lucy Duncan and Susan Waltz: On the spiritual and practical journey of committing meeting resources to reparations
- Fran Brokaw: On the emotional hold of inherited money and the process of releasing it
- Aangoo Tucho: On how personal experience with a cruel regime can affect one’s views on investing and finance
- Traci Hjelt Sullivan: On overcoming “white saviorism” and the “clash of otherness” around class
- Lisa Graustein: On money as a tool of power and the need to ensure it is used for healing rather than “power over”
Resources and Recommendations
Diana encourages readers to have a look at the October 2012 issue of Friends Journal, “Wall Street, Main Street, and Meetinghouse Road” (PDF available here). “Even back then,” she says, “Friends were asking, ‘How do we stay honest in a system that often rewards the opposite?’ Our struggle with integrity and capitalism isn’t new. It’s a perennial Quaker query.”
Do you have a question about Quaker values and money? Or a resource to recommend from your own financial journey? Let us know and you might get featured on the show! Leave a voicemail by calling 317-QUAKERS (317-782-5377) or send an email to [email protected].
Listen at QuakersToday.org or your favorite podcast app, and watch extended video interviews on our YouTube channel at Youtube.com/friendsjournal.
Season 6 of Quakers Today is sponsored by
Friends Fiduciary: Ethical investing through a Quaker lens.
American Friends Service Committee: Challenging injustice and building peace.
Diana Gisel Yañez is an Investment Advisor Representative of Natural Investments PBLLC. Natural Investments is an independent Registered Investment Advisor. Quakers Today and Friends Journal are not a registered entity and are not an affiliate or subsidiary of Natural Investments. Find the Disclosures and Disclaimers and Form CRS for Natural Investments at naturalinvestments.com/disclosures-disclaimers.
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