We recently connected with Tansy Mcnulty and have shared our conversation below.
Tansy, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Was there a defining moment in your professional career? A moment that changed the trajectory of your career?
Babymoon 2016
During my pregnancy with my oldest son, my husband and I decided to take a babymoon trip. It was our last trip as a family of two. We disconnected from the world on the beautiful beaches of Bermuda in July 2016. It was glorious; a truly restful and joy-filled vacation where our focus was squarely on one another with no outside distractions. However, when we returned stateside we returned to news about the murders of Philando Castile, Ronnie Shumpert and Alton Sterling; three Black men, three different cities, three police departments, same outcome. I was carrying a baby boy who will one day become a Black man. That shook me. So I decided to leave corporate America and use my skills of problem solving, cost reduction, and coalition building to solve the systemic issue of excessive force in policing within one generation’s time (20yrs). I committed to ending police violence in the US by the year 2038. Though the initial revelation of my life’s purpose came in 2016, I did not start to build the organization until 2018 after the birth of my second son. I then spent the next year and half studying the issue and understanding who was working in this space and their role in the work. I soaked up as much knowledge as I could before launching an online membership community. I have since moved from LLC structure to 501c3 status since our organization does work for the public good. If I were to start over from the beginning today, I would have had 1M4 structured as a nonprofit from the start and I would share more openly about the problem I was addressing while I was reading, studying and connecting with people behind the scenes. The issue of police violence has been happening for generations so it is ‘top of mind’ concern for most people in the Black community. I would be more vocal early on so the right people could easily determine how they can contribute to reducing harm alongside 1M4.
Tansy, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?
I am a Mississippi born and raised servant leader whose calling in life is to end police violence and uplift the mental wellness of Black maternal figures and their families. I am an active duty military spouse with two sons, ages 8 and 6; and they are my world. Everything I do is with the ultimate goal of creating a better, safer and more well nation for my two little ones. As the Founder and CEO of a nonprofit organization, 1 Million Madly Motivated Moms (1M4), that works to end excessive force and increase access to mental health resources, our organization sits at the intersection of social justice, public safety and mental wellness centering Black and historically under-resourced communities. After the uprisings of 2020, our organization, 1M4, committed to systemic change by providing the nation with a central place to locate hundreds of alternatives to calling the police for mental health, behavioral health, and substance use disorder emergencies. With Elijah McClain in mind and his mother on our hearts, in 2021, we compiled and released the first free, national directory of over 150 community and crisis response teams. Then, in early 2024, after the support of The Sozosei Foundation and Players Coalition we updated, redesigned, and raised awareness of The Right Response directory including over 260 teams across the country that are trained and equipped to respond to people in times of mental health crisis. Since the Right Response release, over 2800 unique visitors have referenced the tool to find teams in their local areas. This reduces incarceration and over use of Emergency Room Departments at hospitals. It is time we stop treating mental illness and mental health challenges as crimes and instead center the care of the people in need of services.
I speak on national panels about mental health equity and police violence. I serve on national commissions to improve crisis response systems in the United States and I am vocal about how mental illness impacts my family and the urgent need to decriminalize it in this country.
At my core I am a mom who simply wants to create a better nation for my sons. I just happen to save a lot of lives and reduce harm in communities across the country while doing so. Our organization also creates safe spaces for moms and maternal figures to share their stories, feelings and needs in our Sista Checkin convenings. Additionally, we partner with technology companies like ANJEL Tech and iWTNS app to wrap each family in the latest personal safety technology to ease the worries and concerns of Black families. Our work has been featured on Good Morning America 3rd Hour, ESSENCE Magazine, Business Insider, Black Enterprise and other media outlets but I am most proud of the amazing humans I am helping to raise. My sons are aware and recognize the inequities in the nation and they can clearly articulate how they would make a positive difference in the world and it brings me immeasurable joy.
We often hear about learning lessons – but just as important is unlearning lessons. Have you ever had to unlearn a lesson?
I have to continue to unlearn that being humble and meek are good qualities for women leaders. Growing up in the Bible Belt, we were often taught to “work hard and your hard work will be noticed then rewarded”. Though the intent may have been to not raise prideful, egotistical women, the ultimate goal became leaders who rarely share what amazing things they have done and are doing. We are literally not “tooting our own horn enough.” Still today, I have to remind myself that people will only join this work and feel empowered to do life changing, system transforming work when they see and hear that I, and others like me, are doing it and help them understand how the work directly impacts their personal safety and wellness. Studies have proven that it usually takes seven instances of exposure to a product or service for an individual to trust and purchase from a business. I feel it is the same in the nonprofit space. We have to constantly and persistently share our wins and our work so people feel empowered to join in, volunteer or donate to our work. So, being humble is not an effective practice in nonprofit work or business ownership. Be loud. Share the mission in every conversation. Equip others to join in and become the biggest ambassadors and trusted voices in this lifesaving work. Tell people what you do then tell them six more times.
What do you think helped you build your reputation within your market?
Consistency. No matter how the focus in philanthropy shifts and the nation moves on from cases of police abuse of power, 1M4 and I continue our work towards ending the issue by 2038. I work daily to show up in spaces that move us closer to our end goal and collaborate with people and organizations who have like-missions to 1M4.
Collaborative thinking. I am in competition with no one other than yesterday’s version of myself. When I meet and talk with organizations and leaders doing similar work, I instinctively think about and share ways in which we can support each other. I am open and willing to partner with anyone who genuinely cares about the quality of life of our nation’s most vulnerable and who believe we have the power to transform systems of harm to systems of care. It’s collaboration over everything for me.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://1m4.org/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/tansymcnulty/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/tansy.hall.3/
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tansymcnulty/
- Twitter: https://x.com/TansyMcNulty
- Youtube: https://youtube.com/@weare1m4?si=uzq72uh68uKyNpjz
- Other: https://linktr.ee/1M4
Image Credits
A Key’s Moment Photography, Cherazay Photography Studio, Robert Bates Photography, Tiffany D. Brown Photography