Cultural Organizing for a Just Society: making art & culturE integral to social justice organizing and movement buildingCultural organizing exists at the intersection of art and activism. It is a fluid and dynamic practice that is understood and expressed in a variety of ways, reflecting the unique cultural, artistic, organizational and political contexts of its practitioners and the communities they work in. Cultural organizing is about placing art, culture and creative practice at the center of an organizing strategy. It is also about organizing from a particular cultural identity, community of place or worldview.
This workshop will present innovative examples of cultural organizing to spark an interactive conversation about exemplary practices, challenges, and strategies for supporting cultural organizing. It will explore the power of art, culture, creative practice and media making to: expand who is included in organizing and how they are included, creatively frame and communicate visions of change, encourage critical thinking, break down fear, and humanize polarized issues.
Presenters: Amalia Deloney (MAG-Net), Ricardo Levins Morales (RLM Arts Studio), Graciela I. Sánchez (Esperanza Center for Peace and Justice), and Carlton Turner (Alternate Roots). Facilitator: Javiera Benavente (Arts & Democracy Project).
Creative OrganizingFor activists, artists, and artist-activists! Art can contribute to changing people's perceptions, hearts and understandings of what has been, what is and what's possible. But art can't do it alone; people getting together and acting together is the real source of social change. The dignity and possibility in all people is the underlying message of this workshop, which will include "medicinal art" – meaning when we work with any community, start with a diagnosis. What keeps a group of people from knowing their power and acting on it? What stories then might be offered, to free up trapped energy, which can help reveal the possible avenues for collective action?
Facilitated by Ricardo Levins Morales (RLM Arts Studio), a founding member of the Northland Poster Collective who has participated in the trenches of the labor movement and offered his art as a tool to assist in organizing numerous drives and educational efforts.
Organización cultural para una sociedad justa: El arte y la cultura hacen parte integral de la organización para la justicia social y la construcción de movimientosCultural organizing exists at the intersection of art and activism. It is a fluid and dynamic practice that is understood and expressed in a variety of ways, reflecting the unique cultural, artistic, organizational and political contexts of its practitioners and the communities they work in. Cultural organizing is about placing art, culture and creative practice at the center of an organizing strategy. It is also about organizing from a particular cultural identity, community of place or worldview.
This workshop will present innovative examples of cultural organizing to spark an interactive conversation about exemplary practices, challenges, and strategies for supporting cultural organizing. It will explore the power of art, culture, creative practice and media making to: expand who is included in organizing and how they are included, creatively frame and communicate visions of change, encourage critical thinking, break down fear, and humanize polarized issues.
Presenters: Amalia Deloney (MAG-Net), Ricardo Levins Morales (RLM Arts Studio), Graciela I. Sánchez (Esperanza Center for Peace and Justice), and Carlton Turner (Alternate Roots). Facilitator: Javiera Benavente (Arts & Democracy Project).
Organización política y creatividadFor activists, artists, and artist-activists! Art can contribute to changing people's perceptions, hearts and understandings of what has been, what is and what's possible. But art can't do it alone; people getting together and acting together is the real source of social change. The dignity and possibility in all people is the underlying message of this workshop, which will include "medicinal art" – meaning when we work with any community, start with a diagnosis. What keeps a group of people from knowing their power and acting on it? What stories then might be offered, to free up trapped energy, which can help reveal the possible avenues for collective action?
Facilitated by Ricardo Levins Morales (RLM Arts Studio), a founding member of the Northland Poster Collective who has participated in the trenches of the labor movement and offered his art as a tool to assist in organizing numerous drives and educational efforts.