 Good afternoon everybody. How are you? Excellent. It's great to see you here having survived snowpocalypse's and stuff to get here And I think we're gonna dodge a snowstorm that we were gonna have a few days ago tomorrow So hopefully you'll see Milwaukee in a perfect light Welcome to Milwaukee rep my name is Mark Clements. I'm the artistic director to my right Chad bowman Managing director and apps. We are absolutely thrilled to have you here at this very first intersection summit So we're gathering today in our deep belief that the theater can create bridges between disparate communities Bring us together in the examination of varying world views and discover creative ways in which the arts can address community needs And maximize collective opportunities After six decades here at Milwaukee rep We changed our mission a couple of years ago to focus on creative positive change in our community Through plays that inspire provoke and entertain an audience representative of the city's rich diversity This change put us on a path to launching impact our engagement and education initiative that uses the unique talents of our art essence and The theater to propel our community forward in this room We have some of the most forward-thinking minds in engagement education and leadership Gathered here for the summit. We're really excited about the opportunity to hear and to learn from you at a moment when the country is clearly divided and Our theaters offer spaces that are welcome Welcoming inspirational to all where diverse opinions descent and civil debate are not only tolerated but invited and we're active listening and courageous exchange of value exercising empathy and understanding can begin with us as Milwaukee rep trustee at act our reminds us theater is uniquely designed to build community It's a communal experience by definition in an age of virtuality It requires presence and at its best theater creates a sense of shared experience and sparks a conversation in no way that any other art form Can the nation needs its artists Perhaps now more than ever to help us empathize with each other and build a shared vision for our country Know that whatever you're feeling today Stresses life stresses your work matters. You matter and we remain hopeful that we can build a better tomorrow together In this spirit, we hope that the summit offers a platform for reflection Inquiry collaboration and we all work to determine what our next steps are collectively as a field and in our own individual practices So we'd like to invite a quick moment to recognize and thank the staff of Milwaukee Repertory Theater and in particular Courtney McInery never Nelson. I second that Never Nelson and jitty to taunt for their tireless work today. I was joking earlier. We are not conference people your theater people so But as as Milwaukee ins we are welcoming people. So hopefully you will feel that in the next couple of days Additionally, I want to say a very sincere. Thank you to the summit planning committee including Marcy Bermusey Leah Harris Anita Maynard Loesch Anita my former colleague. Thank you. We're so welcome that you're here Courtney as well Chris Moses Eric and Nagel never Nelson Jesus Reyes will will a tailor Jenny to town and Mark Valdez Thank you to them. I just want to I'm gonna go off script for just two seconds. Oh I Just to think that let literally two years ago We didn't have a community engagement department in our organization So I also want to give out an additional shout-out to leader Hoffman who took on that role initially. There's leader And said put some exciting things together for us to talk about let's get us all kind of talking And she got that going and then we were really fortunate to hire NABRA and then fortunately to get Courtney Who actually have just been the engine of this and I'm just so in admiration for their efforts And just what has happened in such a short time. It just shows that if there is desire and if there's a will there's a way So with that much further ado I would like to introduce the chair of Milwaukee reps impact counsel and the retired president of Northwest and Mutual Foundation He's been a long-term board member is a fantastic friend of the theater and a friend Someone extremely inspiring to us all here John Cordsman And now for something completely different Welcome to Milwaukee part of our country's wonderful fresh coast As you wander around our city, you'll no doubt see a city in transition Continuing to honor our past But leaning into our future As you walk around downtown, you'll see world-class architecture and entertainment and sports venues As well as these beautiful historic buildings impeccably maintained Alongside brand new developments that blend Milwaukee's past and its exciting future Even more important to me personally though is the work you may not see It's the work being undertaken by residents in neighborhoods all across this city I want you to know That what you have seen on the news about Milwaukee's many challenges is largely true But also incomplete Each and every day people living in our neighborhoods Are doing innovative heroic and game-changing work Accepting the challenge of driving positive change in the face of many many significant challenges Thank you And this space is one that I see the marriage of art and community engagement working And contributing to collective efficacy The name Milwaukee itself I don't know if you know this or not comes from an Algonquian word meaning good beautiful or pleasant land Other interpretations say it's a Potawatomi phrase, which is a gathering place by the waters No immigrant lived Where Milwaukee stands today until 1675 But our natives the original people of this land first appeared here almost 12,000 years ago Now nine different tribes live near the confluence of our three rivers The Milwaukee the Menominee and the Kinekinek rivers at one time or another The four largest tribes here were the Potawatomi the Chippewa the Ottawa and the Menominee So Milwaukee arose from tribal lands We and now you all of you are surrounded by sacred places Later immigrants from across the world Settled in Milwaukee and contributed to the evolution of the city as it is today Now I've been asked why engagement in the arts matters to me And honestly over the years the answer has evolved From one point to the next And now what I say is it matters most to me because one I personally know an energetic talented Six-year-old boy Being raised by a single college educated mother living in one of our most distressed communities That boy's involvement in the arts Is a window into a different future for himself I know a 13-year-old boy who's a neuroblastoma cancer survivor Whose participation has meant growth But more importantly Literally healing for himself But also the fellow fellow artists that he knows You see Kids with cancer still want to be kids Arts provide that opportunity For members of the Feast of Crispin Crispin a nonprofit organization Bringing together professional actors with post-deployment service veterans It means teaching and strengthening emotional resources That they need to overcome traumatic and reintegration issues And it's going very well and strong in Milwaukee In milwaukee and elsewhere, there are far too many of our children Who live with significant childhood trauma Oprah spoke about this just recently on 60 minutes The arts provide a method for surfacing the source of the trauma And helping our youth discover a path to their future Now before I go on to the introduction of the keynote, I want to say one thing Just checking the list that Courtney gave me for speaking for today One I want to offer my thoughts and prayers to you as you start this conference Second and big letters. It says don't say congratulations And lastly I want you to know I hear you And if you don't believe me, here's what she wrote. I hear it Now on to our keynote and this is something completely different because I've arranged this in a way And I asked Carmen in advance if it's okay and she gave me permission because otherwise it would have to be absolution I've asked three of your attendees to do part of the introduction today So I'm going to ask those three individuals to walk down and to stand at the bottom of the front row And Courtney's going to pass them like come on, you remember who you are And we're going to hear introductions In the voice of this is about acting theater, right? So our first is going to be introducing Carmen in the voice of an agent Carmen is a national consultant Leading conversations at the forefront of the field on equity diversity and inclusion issues She is the founder and director of art equity a national program that provides tools Resources and training to support the intersections of art and activism She has provided leadership development organizational planning and coaching for staff executives and boards of over 100 non-profit organizations She is on the faculty of Yale school of drama where she addresses issues of equity Identity and inclusion in the arts for the past eight years She has worked with the Oregon Shakespeare festival on structural and organizational equity with her guidance osf has implemented innovative programming policies and new organizational structures to support ongoing inclusion efforts In addition, she serves as a consultant for theater communication groups Diversity and inclusion initiatives and programming where she has partnered with tcg to launch a national We all know agents get carried away and karman is to cut it right there. Let's move on So now we're going to hear from her biggest fan ever Past 15 years karman directed leadership development in inter-ethnic relations And nationally recognized social justice program Cosponsored by asian americans advancing justice the center the central american resource center and the martin luther king dispute resolution center Prior to her work with the ldi r program karman was the associate regional director for the american friend service committee An international human rights organization where she oversaw human rights work on the us mexico border Gay liberation and sovereignty education work in hawaii and tenant rights and racial and economic justice work in california And arizona karman is a founding member of the california chapter of the national association for multicultural education of former human services commissioner All right now Truly her biggest fan, but now most importantly You're going to hear from the perspective of her mother And mama loves you so much Karman's work is rooted in popular education Community organizing and a commitment to social justice She remains dedicated to community building and activism and has worked in the nonprofit sector for over 20 years Thank you. Thank you On behalf of the four of us and the milwaukee rep it's board of trustees and all of its staff and artists and members of the crew Welcome to the stage karman was never meant to be read out loud like that ever That's lesson learned lesson learned okay, I will I'll next time I will really I'll spend more time really. Hi everybody It's really delightful to be here. There's plenty to say congratulations too, but I want to just make sure is that Was there are we okay? Can I do that? It feels like Yeah, okay folks Wonderful wonderful. I would like to say first and foremost. I was going to say congratulations for the very first intersection summit on community engagement Here in milwaukee, wisconsin And also obviously I want to just special thanks and shout out to the milwaukee rep for hosting um this gathering and mark and chat your leadership and congratulations on your 65th anniversary and Um, the intersections planning committee. Thank you for inviting me. Uh, I I I know some of you all so how gracious of you. Um, I just hope I'll be worthy. Um, and then, um Courtney and cat. Let me where's cat this cat here Oh cat who was so sweet and picked me up from the airport and Courtney who's been just so gracious You know, um, I think at the core of community engagement is just making friends You know knowing how to make friends and you two do that really well I'm glad to have you as uh, two new friends so gracious so welcoming. Thank you both very much Okay Yeah So folks listen, we could be having any conversation. I mean given, uh, what's going on in the world Um, certainly what's happening in our nation. We could be having Any conversation in the world and here we are huddled together having this conversation here In this city right now. So um, how important and special that is I'd like to do something before I get into Giving you a little bit of an overview of what I'm hoping to do today I would first like to find out if Courtney was nice enough to give me a um A list of the attendees, but I never look at that because I always wanted to show up And be surprised, you know, like, oh, I didn't know you were gonna come I didn't know you were gonna be here. So I don't know exactly who's here I know a lot of you probably know each other, but could we just Take a moment to introduce ourselves to the people to your right and to your left and Listen, don't leave me yet Introduce yourself to the people to your right and to the left and behind you directly behind you and directly in front of you So that you are creating a circumference around you of people that you know And then you'll at least know somebody who knows somebody else who knows somebody else, right? Could we just do that and here's what I'd like you to do when I say go Could you just give them your full name if you feel comfortable? And then I would also like to invite you to share with them the pronouns that you use And so it might sound something like this. Hi, my name is Carmen Morgan And I use she her hers as pronouns Right, and I see some of you are like, oh, what am I what does that mean? It's okay. You'll be fine So I'm gonna say go one two three go and then Do it and then everybody get to know the people around you. So one two three go Okay, you can finish up that last introduction Did you get to everybody? Oh, I see folks still in deep conversation. Oh, that's good Oh, wow, he's got a lot to say he's really into this All right, okay folks Wonderful, uh, did you get to most of the folks around you? Uh, are you if you're sitting next to people that you know already this might not have been as exciting for you But did a lot of you get to meet the folks around you? Oh good. Oh good. Most of you. Okay Wonderful, I want to take this a little further if you don't mind just so that we can kind of get a sense of the landscape who's here um If you wouldn't mind signifying in some way and you know You can choose to wave your hand or clap or snap or shout If you want to stomp your feet or if you want to stand up whatever works for you But just signify in some way if the following Speaks to you. So if you're from the west coast, yes Not much of us here. Okay East coast, okay Um, what about if you're from the south? Okay, uh, if you are from the midwest Oh Um, what about if you're from a state that that has experienced a storm within the last three months? I did tell you I'm from I'm from the west coast. I'm from southern california Um, what about if you're here from alaska or hawai? Oh, okay. Yeah, okay. What about if you're from a recognized or an unrecognized tribe? Yes Thank you Uh, what if you're here from outside the u.s. Wonderful. Oh, that's great. Okay Um, how many of you've seen black panther? How many of you've seen black panther at least three times? Okay Um, and of course if you're here from milwaukey Yes, wonderful. Wonderful. And if you're here from milwaukey rep Wonderful Okay, folks. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Um, so listen before I get started, you know, I appreciate john Um talking about the fact that we are um On land That does not that was taken from the original people here and I want to continue that I just want to do um before we get into talking a little bit more about um community engagement I'd like to just pause and uh double down on what uh john said um And I'd like to uh just take a moment To acknowledge that pretty much anywhere that we go in the united states We are on land That was taken from the original people That were here And those people that are still here and when we don't acknowledge That it does a disservice and perpetuates a myth And I'm reminded by the brilliant activist artist Larissa fast horse who said uh to me don't come in my house Lock me up in my own basement and then ask me how you can help me So at least we can acknowledge the ground on which we gather We will not be able to effectively build communities engage with communities on top of lies So I'd like to um continue what john started and acknowledge the present day tribes here of wisconsin The ojibway The stock bridge monsi The onida The manomini The ho chunk The wata the patawatomi And we also acknowledge their ancestors who came from the greater new england area The montauk The piquat The mohegan The mohegan and The lenny lenope And also those who we do not know as a result of their genocide Uh, and yeah, uh, the word no walkie Um means good beautiful And pleasant land and that is the land that we are on Okay, thank you for that Um I think that's important. I think that that is uh important to do Um, so that we don't forget the history and that we don't forget that To forget that history is to relegate The uh, uh current experience of indigenous folks native american folks to relegate it to Mascots costumes artifacts and museums and it supports the ongoing project of colonialism so, um Thank you So I wanted to share with you what I was thinking about doing and quite frankly, um, Courtney kind of told me what to do much like she told john what to do. Um This is uh, she's she's a mover. She's a shaker. She's doing it all This is what I was thinking Informed by Courtney. Um That I would share with you some of my thinking around community engagement Community building. Um, and then I this is my own. I added this myself. Courtney didn't tell me to I wanted to add a little tool that I use A lesson Um that I've learned along the way that I've gathered along the way and the work that I've done I want to share that tool with you Uh towards the back end and then I'm hoping that we'll have time for questions so that we can have a discussion I realized that this is moving. I thought that I was so in a minute I'll just be closer to you all. Okay, so let me Okay I just got to get everything situated now that I know that it moves So, um, so that's what I was thinking I want to talk to you a little bit about some thoughts that I have Some, you know, I was told that I could provoke you all so Courtney said I could provoke you. I'm going to be doing a little bit of that and then a tool Um, and then I hope that we'll have time for some questions and answers and a really good Hardly discussion right before dinner and then we come back here and we get to see an incredible performance. I can't wait to see that So, uh, that's what I wanted. I want to try to do. So let me start off with First of all, does that sound like a plan to you because Courtney is suggesting it, but I want to okay We're all you're you're in this with me. Okay, good Don't leave me out here. Don't let me hang it out here by myself. Um, so here's what I want to talk I want to I want to start off with something. I've been thinking about and I know a lot of you have been thinking about In fact, you're gathered here for the next couple of days to talk about community engagement Uh, so here's what I've been thinking about Actually, do we really need community engagement? I mean, well, I guess part of it that I'm wrestling with is Um, what do we mean by community? And then what do we mean by engagement? Um, I'd like to start there. I want to know Which community Is doing the engaging who you all engaging who's being engaged how we define in community What's all of this about? Because I think that for some communities Um engagement has led to their genocide Engagement has led to their enslavement internment loss of sovereignty loss of land So if you're from one of those communities where that's your history When you hear community engagement Uh, you're gonna be a little suspicious Uh, I mean at best community engagement is transactional So that's what I want to know. I want to know how are we defining it? What do you all mean by community engagement? And this is not, uh, rhetorical I actually am asking what do you all what are you all talking about? What do you mean by community engagement? And I think there's a mic that can roam around But I'd love to just at least get some thoughts so that I'm not up here, you know by myself wondering what What do you all thinking about in when you say community engagement? Partnership just the idea of collective impact that if we are working together to serve a group of people We can do a better job if we're all doing it in with one idea with one driving force. Okay collective impact some What was that? Visibility is part of community engagement. Who's visibility the theater's visibility or the community's visibility The community's visibility. Okay, anybody else Reciprocity, okay So it's a both and Okay anybody else Intentionality Okay Yes Okay, listening to the community stories a couple more I hear building empathy and then I heard Relationship, okay, so it's relational Access who's access Everybody's access anybody's access Okay Okay Okay, um any other last minute ones because I want to posit something else Okay, well, here's what I'm wondering. I'm wondering if it's not so much about community engagement that we need I'm wondering if it's more like community justice Because I feel I mean, you know folks You invited me to come here. You know my background is so because I feel That We can't really have community let alone engagement Unless all of us are seen and treated as fully human So I think all roads just keep leading back to justice I'm just wondering for you all and this really is Uh Respectfully, I'm I'm just inquiring Why this isn't being framed as a community justice conversation as opposed to a community engagement conversation Or do we feel that they're the same thing? Is this community engagement mean community justice? Yeah, okay Well, I'm hearing folks say that that that it's not the same thing and I would agree And I would say to you that if I'm on the parameters if I'm on the outside of this conversation If I am the unrepresented I'm not sure that I would want to engage with the people in this room I'm not sure Where quite frankly you all are coming from in terms of community engagement And but on the other hand if I'm on the outside if I am on the parameters if I am the Unrepresented and I know that you're committed to community justice Well, then that might be a different conversation and I might show up very differently Yeah I'm I'm just speaking what you know my my truth. Um, and I would say folks. I don't think that it's semantics I mean, I we already somebody already said that they would they would position them as two different things I don't think that it's just semantics Community engagement versus community justice. I think it's an issue of values If I were on the outside listening to this conversation I would want to know if you all are talking about a grant deliverable Or if you're talking about core values um I would need to know that before I could be interested in A community engagement process with you or project with you If I don't know you Really if I don't know you and you position yourself as a cultural arts institution as a theater I might have some reason to not trust you Um, I would want to know Just basic things like look, uh, you're talking about community engagement. Can my community use your space for community meeting? Uh, you're talking about community engagement. Do you have all gender restrooms? You're talking about community engagement, but what language what I have to speak in here in order to be heard I want to know if you understand what keeps me up at night What keeps my community up at night? Do you understand how my community is racially profiled? Do you understand that your theater is on my ancestral land? Will your theater be a sanctuary for my community to be safe from deportation if we need a safe harbor? These are the things I need to know Before you come and try to engage with me Are you going to stand between me and the police if it comes to that? Just exactly what kind of community engagement are you talking about? We uh, with the art equity training that we do We use the documentary some of you in this room have gone through that facilitator training We do a documentary that features eight men discussing race in the united states And towards the end of the documentary one of the men david lee who identifies as a chinese american man He looks directly in the camera and he says if I were talking to a room full of white people I would say to them give me justice Because if you do not give me justice I cannot love you So folks this justice thing is a big deal There are few things that people are willing to die for and justice is one of them I'm not saying that you know folks in this room need need to be willing to die for justice, but I am saying that It's a prevailing primary Factor in people's hearts and minds and if you're thinking about engaging communities I would try to center justice at the core of that work We work with art equity. We work with theaters all over the nation and we talk to them about What we call a politic of difference have what are their politics? What are their politics around difference? How do they engage the other? capital o How do they create the other? How do they invoke the other? We ask them When you see the other what is operating for you? What is the operating system that sometimes is really subliminal that sometimes is unconscious? So we talked to them about their politics of difference and we talked to them about Everything from well, I don't see difference. We're all human beings That approach that's one approach And then we also talked to them about The other approach the diversity approach which relies on optics and number counting and tokenizing Without any commitment to substantial systemic structural change And i'm sharing this because these different approaches to difference We suggest that what is required is an approach to difference that acknowledges history Current privilege and power dynamics and that works towards justice And we call that the social justice approach to difference So we share that with theaters because we believe That theater's role is not only to be a tool for social change And I know some of you don't necessarily feel that that theater's role is to be Primarily and fundamentally a tool for social change. Maybe that's a byproduct But theater's role might be fundamentally to maybe to entertain Maybe theater's role is to Be a mirror to hold up different narratives But some of us feel that theater's fundamental role is actually to be a tool for social change I'm one of those people And that until we actually have equity in this country That everyone is seen as fully human that We would go further than that and say not only should theater's role be a tool for social change All theaters should be social justice institutions That doing social justice theater and upholding social justice values would be the role of theater Until we have Equity for everyone parody for everyone justice for everyone. What else should you be doing? You should be doing social justice theater and the fact that we have Well that we don't have everyone being seen as fully human Actually, it's not just theaters that should be social justice institutions pretty much everybody should be social justice institutions Oh, what do I mean by that? You mean should the bank be a social? Yes, the bank should be a social justice bank Credit union. Yeah, it should be a social justice credit union. What about the grocery store grocery store should be a social justice grocery store gas station Yes, the gas station. What about the schools? Yes, the schools Um, there's uh, is joya headley here. I know there's a young high school student Who's actually doing um racial justice work in milwaukey high schools I hope she's gonna be here maybe over the next couple of days. Um, but anyway, the students are protesting Racial disparity in the high schools. So yes, the school should be social justice institutions until we have justice Every institution should prioritize social justice values So it might let it might it might sound like i'm asking you all to shift your frame from community engagement to community and to community justice Yes That's what i'm asking you to do I'm asking you to make sure that the work that you're doing around community engagement is not transactional That you're not inviting people into your spaces Trying to connect to them to the things that you are doing But instead centering them and their lives and their needs and their issues at the core I'm asking you to not invite them To center and sit around and talk about your plays But to share power with them access and resource I'm asking you to acknowledge that as predominantly white institutions You've had access to a whole lot of resources and possibly you might have a debt to pay And that the responsibility should be maybe to move back a little bit Or even give back and to be a part of something as opposed to being the only game in town I would be invested if I were a theater that was committed to social justice issues I would be invested particularly in the current moment right now in the american theater Around leadership change By the way, have you all been tracking that document that rebecca? It's rebecca and evren Right that they have that is incredible. I mean, it's one thing to know it theoretically But to see that graph in that chart and if you don't have access to that We all should be clicking on that link and staying abreast of what's happening if you don't have access to that link How can they get access to that link can people who would like that link to see do you know what i'm talking about? Okay, what's that? Oh, thank you. It's going to be shared on slack and you all know what that is Okay Okay, it's going to be shared so that you all will have access to that So part of your investment your community engagement investment I think is definitely just outside of a regional context. I think it's connected to feel building Obviously, it's connected to the lives of real people So how will you know if this summit is more than lip service? And that you won't be having the same exact conversation in 12 months I want to know how are you all going to know? No, really. I want to know Well, I'm hoping that it's going to mean that you all are going to be interrogating systemic and structural issues I'm hoping that you all are going to be thinking about uprooting some stuff disrupting some stuff changing some stuff Um, or I suppose you could be talking about community engagement for another decade But you know, I say this often and it's going to sound very reductive But I say, you know in order to change you actually have to change Um, I say to you know institutions and theaters Uh, I have so many stories. I shouldn't go off Tangent here, but I just got to tell you this one story So I'm working with a theater. They would like to diversify their board. It's an all-white board They're in a very large diverse metropolitan community And um, so they called me and said listen Could you come and talk to us about diversifying our board and you know, I flew down and uh, talk to them Now I just call. I mean now I just Have the conversation off the phone instead of flying down because there's some helpful strategic questions to ask So they want to diversify their board and so the first thing I said to them was well What kind of diversity you're talking about because folks, you know that when we talk about diversity now really It's code for we want people of color and I think that's problematic because it's scapegoats Um, there's a whole bunch of reasons that are wrong with that like we shouldn't be pitting issue against issue Um, so anyway, so I said well, what kind of diversity you're talking about and they said, um Well people of color, of course, we want more people of color on the board. So I said Well, talk to me about your antiracist ideology You want more people of color on the board. What's what's your antiracist ideology? Well, we don't have any antiracist idea. What are you talking about? We just want more people of color on the board I said, well You're gonna have to change your culture if you want to get them and keep them And I then I said and this is why now I just talked to people on the phone because I don't think this was The this next thing that I said was very upsetting to them very off-putting to them. I said, um I think you should just be an all-white board just stay An all-white board and just become an all-white Antiracist board and then worrying about people of color on the board is going to be You won't have to worry about people of color on your board. I mean something happens It's I don't know coincidence. Maybe whenever people are antiracist organizations are antiracist people of color Don't mind being there and they stay and they're invested. So I said, why don't you focus on that first? um Now I just talked to them over the phone first So But that's what I mean folks in order to change You actually have to change so What do you think about this? Community justice instead of community engagement. What do you think about that? Are you gonna? Okay, okay. Well, I see I see five people willing to I see at least five or six people willing to move in that direction Um, okay So now I want to share with you the tool because I want to be mindful of time I would love for us to have a conversation. Am I doing okay, Courtney? Yeah Okay, wonderful. I've got enough time. I want to share the tool and then uh, we're going to open it up for q&a So we can have a great conversation. So here's the tool Have been thinking about this because I really believe I think all of us here Everybody in this room. We're very committed. We're very invested in building this Beloved community, right? It does it can happen. And in fact, I've seen glimpses of it And I've been thinking about it. How do you do that? How do you build the beloved community? What does it look like? um, how do you change the hearts and minds of um a community Of a nation of an organization. What does it look like? How do you operationalize that and I think it looks like this and this comes from a lot of work You know, I used to do a lot of community organizing I was a community organizer in northwest Pasadena I used to do tenants rights organizing with um african-americans and latinos and I remember being frustrated time and time again When um, these two communities would be going after the same things but somehow being pitted against each other I remember, um, you know the latino community was working to get a day labor center and the african-american community was working To get a hiring hall and they fought they fought at each other and I remember thinking I think you both want the same thing So there's something about having a shared analysis. So this is to me the first thing that is needed If we want to change the world, I think and this is my um, uh, my um, probably faulty Hypothesis. I'm testing it. I'm always testing this out. I think the first and the first thing that is needed first and foremost is Having folks with some shared analysis Some shared common understanding Some clarity in terms of how we are making meaning of the world We're getting all this data You're calling it a coincidence. I'm calling it racism How are we making meaning of the things that we see around us the patterns that we see around us? That's what I mean by an analysis I mean, obviously, you know some awareness like you have to be able to look around and say something's happening here And then you've got to be able to make meaning of the thing that's happening. So I think that's the first piece Some awareness and some analysis and then the second is you've got to be willing to take action Now I think that they should be in that order um I work with folks. I'm laughing because I I think I I'm thinking of all these failed projects and all of these things that I would call officially a This is a sociological term officially a hot mess because Folks were galloping ahead with the very best of intentions No analysis So we have all kinds of interesting projects that are created And they're not hitting the mark. So I think first and foremost have some awareness Sometimes it means that you're going to have to do some self educating Look at these patterns health disparities housing Lack of job opportunities, these are not coincidences when they continue to fall down along gender and racial lines So the analysis of the awareness and then you've got to be willing to take action Because the other thing I see is folks who have a whole lot of analysis They got a whole lot of stuff to say and um, they're doing nothing And I I do think that the action is going to be more than Facebook and you know putting a happy face on something that somebody says I think it's going to actually require Sometimes some heavy lifting doing things moving your body getting outside. Maybe being uncomfortable Speaking Asking questions over and over again. It might be direct action So those two things and then second and I feel like this part is key There's got to be some accountability loop That if these things are going to rye then um, check it Course adjust pivot for goodness sakes. I mean don't commit to the end to a bad idea And figure out some way to have a feedback loop where folks can tell you what's going on in a way that's not punitive So a high commitment to feedback And then will you listen to people when they give you the feedback and then respond to it? Believe them And then last but certainly not least and I think sometimes this one is the hardest Is to um, I have some grace you know, I think um I say often, you know, I wonder if my humanity can show today, you know, like oh my humanity is hanging out um, I think that it's very easy to be right um, and some of us can be self righteous in a hot minute And uh, we can be by ourselves. I mean, what are we trying to do? Are we trying to build community? Are we trying to work? Together, you know, it's very hard to do this work when you're siloed and when you're isolated and when you're Just way out there on you and you can be right you can stand on principle and be right and self righteous And not do a damn thing Because nobody can work with you. So I think all four of those things are needed And I don't think that all four are needed all the time in equal measure I think sometimes it's got to be all about accountability Just drill down on accountability Or sometimes I think it's time for action. So I think you're you know, you're just gonna have to just like you're driving a stick shift know when to Put it put press the gas and pull up on the clutch So that's that's what I would say Those are the four ingredients for how to change the world how to operationalize the values for justice And you just have to be steadfast steadfast steadfast Um Yeah, so that's my two cents. That's my tool Courtney. I added that without um, I didn't think you would mind After I provoked people with a question. I added that as a A tool that I think might be helpful. So folks um, I want to close out With sharing something I shared this recently with um An incredible group of students, uh, who are um Brilliant and creative and much like a lot of the people in this room Um, I wanted to share this with you because I do I really think this is true Um, I do believe That right here right in this room are some of the most powerful powerful people in the world We happen to be sitting in The united states Uh, which is one of the most powerful countries in the world and you all are the folks who create culture You actually make culture you add culture to um, this, uh To to our to our um to the ethos you all are adding and creating culture You're deciding who is going to be seen as fully human. You're deciding who is going to be seen Um, and I think that because of that you all can absolutely positively do anything. I think that um The uh evil forces, um, and I won't name any names I don't think that they're as smart as we are. I don't think that they're as creative as we are And I think that it's going to be incumbent upon You all to actually change the world Yeah, so here's what I want to leave off with i'm going to just do a quote here from tony kade bambara Who says that it is the role of the artist to make the revolution irresistible? Um, and we know what's at stake. We know what we have to lose. Um, and so yeah On behalf of my colleagues who aren't here with me physically But I know they're here with me in spirit tie to foe hannah fendlin lydia garcia leslie ishi hana koro yama Libby peterson nigele porter and michael robertson. I want to thank you all for listening Okay, and i'm hoping we can have a conversation Wonderful, so we still have a little bit of time and this is where the q&a would come in Um, I think we have about 20 minutes if i'm not mistaken Oh, we've got about 30 minutes. Can we please have a conversation? Uh, and I it's my understanding that there is a um And we can use this mic too. There is a microphone that's available. So let's let's have a discussion I'm gonna come down over here with this mic so I can share it with folks Okay So let's have a discussion. I'm hoping Sorry, sorry about that. I like microphones So karman one of the things that I struggle with in my work and that I've actually working in predominantly white institutions This idea that that engagement engagement with audiences engagement with communities is actually education That at its core like I've heard people say actually engagement is education And I was wondering if you could speak on that like how how that Is that how a helpful framework and how that is problematic? Yeah, um, and I would love other folks to speak on it too I think it's a missed opportunity. I think it's limited. Well, you just heard what I said I feel like it should be about community justice So, um, if that's the limitation, I mean if that's the if that's the uh, the framework that it's about educating Um, I feel like wow, what a missed opportunity and who's been educated Yeah, no, you would you would get no disagreement from me And I think that it just has to take on the very unique form and specificity of the issue at hand, right? So, um Bring a strong analysis to bear What is the plan for action? And you know, there are 355 million ways to do this and we just have to have lots of different points of entry And I think the other thing that we that we, um Miss often particularly because we're always needing to respond and to react so quickly is um, our Strategy, you know, I feel like we're gonna have to link up share information be strategic Uh, I think that that continues to be uh challenging and daunting I I see it, you know, and I see uh working specifically with a sector in a field And really trying to deploy a strategic approach to to this work And you know with the very best of intentions still, um, there's just so much to be done But I would agree with you. I would agree with you. That's what it starts to look like That level of specificity There's one two three hands. So we just need help with uh getting mics to them Thanks If I heard you correctly you said you started your career as an organizer with tenants Um, and I'd love to hear a sense or two about how your thinking has evolved Throughout your career to where you are today I don't know if that's the very best use of our time I mean, I I don't mean any disrespect, but I feel like we can we can talk about some broader issues here How largely I would say the well the short answer in terms of how my thinking might have evolved is doing the Direct on the ground work with communities I kept finding that that missing ingredient was Having a shared framework and this shared analysis So that we would be working across purposes and almost sometimes being pitted against each other and working against each other And I that frustrated me to no end. So Uh, that's that's I think that that would be what evolved out of doing that work on the ground Was to say, you know what? We need to just we need an activist building factory here where we have a shared language shared analysis And we can work like the avengers and what and and and be strategic, you know to what you know what? What I enjoy I enjoy going to A conference and there are folks who have been a part of some conversations and they have shared language And they are strategically placed in rooms and spaces To handle what needs to be handled in that in that conversation. That's what I think I think we have a lot of potential a lot of opportunities To build a base of folks where this is just common sense for them You know where we don't have to like struggle to find people to understand what we're talking about Yeah, that's that's to me. I guess I would say what what what evolved and I didn't mean to be dismissive But I just felt like oh, I just want to make sure that we're yeah Yeah Thank you very much. Thank you There was two and three Do you remember where they are? Yeah, I guess I have a mic Um Yeah, so I work with a particular population adults with autism And recently I've been told both in the arts and outside of it That many people are excited because they see that as the next front in edi How do we make ourselves allies in the current front? Because if we wait for the other things to be fixed before we are the next front I don't think I'll be alive for that Yeah, I agree with you. I mean, I don't know about that I think that one of the things that we need to I would support us in doing a better job of doing is Just what you named which is that I don't I think we we do need to take an intersectional approach and we need to try to figure out ways to have these conversations So it doesn't sound like um, well, you know, we got to do this first and then we're going to do that And then we're going to do this, uh, you know, I quote loretta ross often who says, you know I wasn't first born black then born a woman then born poor You know, I was born all three of these things simultaneously And I think, you know, I want to know, um, if we're going to address racism if we're going to address classism How are we doing it for folks? Who um are autistic? I mean, how does all of these things have to come to bear in how people How people's lived experiences show up, uh, we've got to actually figure out strategies to have these conversations in the In the complicated ways that we experience them in our lives. So Yeah, and what does that look like? Well, I think it looks like us getting more facility and more experience in taking on intersectional approaches So it looks like Everywhere you go, you know what I'm staying at the Hudson. Is anybody by the way does anybody know how to Okay, that's a whole nother conversation. I want anybody who's staying at the Hudson talk to me after this because I want to figure out What's going on with that shower? I think what it looks like is we're I think that it looks like us having Cultivating this um, I call it the operating software that's just always in the background like the matrix, you know Like and then once you see you can't unsee I think that it's bringing to bear that analysis that um gender lens The racial lens the class lens. Um, certainly I think around issues of disability Um, I think that you bring that to bear so you show up and I do this all the time when I go somewhere now. I'm like Well, where are the all gender restrooms? I need an all gender, you know It's it's a part of my my body needs it now. I need an all gender restroom Like it it feels odd to me to see um gender specific restrooms Um, and I also say and I said this when I went to the Hudson immediately I want I walked in I said, well, where would my wheelchair go? You know, like I have this wheelchair with me I'm always With I have a wheelchair and I just need to figure out where would I go if I had my will where is I mean, I have a I have a um A a wheelchair accessibility Frame that is just always running in the background and it's not just um Uh about having access to a wheelchair But I'm saying that it's a muscle that we all have to um increase so that we're walking with all of these different Lenses these valences with us all the time and bringing them to bear I think it it starts to look like that so that we would never then Be in a room and say, um, I don't know if we've got time for that issue We're gonna focus on this this issue now But I also think and I would also say this really that it's also okay for us to say We need to spend time right now with women of color having a conversation about what women of color need to have a conversation about And I I think that they are both and experiences Um, and I'm fearful because I sometimes hear people using intersectionality now as a weapon, you know, like Well, wait a minute. We can't have that conversation at all right now because you're not having all the others No, I think that we're gonna bring an analysis to bear that's more complicated We can lead with the conversation about race and gender and bring in all of these other lenses So I think I went a little bit off on a tangent, but I would agree with you. We can't pit the issues against One another because they live and reside in human beings that experience them simultaneously So I would agree with you. Thank you Hi, thanks so much for your talk. Um I was asked a couple years ago to change the department title that I was working under from community outreach to community engagement and I was Instantly uncomfortable with it because it just seemed like it was a trendy thing to do Um that didn't fit what we were doing and I wasn't really sure why or how to vocalize that Because outreach is a term I'm Comfortable with that felt like what we were doing You know all the things everyone said like collaboration partnership education Engagement does mean something different and you nailed a lot of things that Have given me a lot to think about and I I just You know, I kind of I appreciate what you said. Is this a grant deliverable or a core value and I don't think it is our job necessarily as an arts organization to serve everyone just because that's Coming from you know, either a grant or this desire, you know, I I feel like I'm gonna out myself, but oh well, I would say this in front of my board and my organization that Yes, there's problems going on in Sherman Park Should I go down there and try to solve them with the programs that I have that aren't going to solve them And we're not wanted there. No, you know, like I need to be working on programs that are going to Give people a voice give people a way to see themselves give People some empowerment through things that that we're comfortable doing and I don't know I just feel like there's this huge movement to like we've got to be everyone to everything and we can't like that's Ridiculous and people don't want it, but I don't know. I'm kind of just babbling on the mic but I appreciate the things you said because it's given me a lot of Things to think about and go back and say what exactly are we doing? What's the directive? Where is it coming from and if it's just to check off a box that we're there? That's ridiculous because that's transparent and people are going to know that Absolutely. I agree with you. I think that there's a middle ground. I think you're right You can't be all things to all people and I don't think that folks Want the institutions to do that. I think that we can kind of sense that when we're being used and when You are when we're being tokenized and when this is a grant deliverable And quite frankly sometimes people just say that they're like, well, this is a grant deliverable We got to get it done. So I would agree. I don't think that you can you can be all things to all folks But I do think that there's a middle ground and here's the piece that for me gets frustrating is I feel And I you know, I am so not wanting to offend anybody in here But I just want to say I I do feel that some of these predominantly white institutions and you know Some of you all are from predominantly white institutions Function like gangs. I mean you all are some serious You all run that stuff, you know what I mean? And it's not accessible So I feel that the in between for me is you don't have to be all things to all people But for goodness sakes, I think you should be accessible. You know, I think that What I would like to know I I respect an organization that says look, this is our very specific emphasis and focus We've got this but that then, you know, doesn't shut me out when I want to learn and have access to I mean, you know, these are institutions that are supposed to be for the good of the community And some of them I do feel folks run it like their own sorority and fraternities You have to know the code. You got to know who and this one's got a special seat and such and such I listen, I don't know enough about um, Milwaukee reps. I sure listen. I'm I hope I'm not offending anybody I hope I'm not offending my host the people that invited me to be here But you know what I'm saying? I think that um, I think that's the thing that concerns me is You don't have to be all things to all people. I agree But for goodness sakes, it would be good for you to be open accessible Transparent accountable say that you have this specific Lens and approach And I don't know you don't get to just have this all to yourselves people You just don't especially right now in this day and age when we are looking for leadership We're desperate for leadership. Uh the arts these arts institutions You've got to in some instances. We're counting on you to fill that breach Step up step out move up move out and um Yeah, you don't get to keep it to yourselves and have it for yourselves and run it like your own little private gang That's my thinking. Yeah Okay, I thought I know that there was a hand over here that somebody I have a mic Oh good. The mics are getting around. I'm gonna get some more water um, I'm interested in um You explaining a little bit more what grace looks like in your tool And why you put it at number four if it's really at number four or if it's actually throughout But you just named it forth Yes, it's actually throughout. I don't think it's number four what I should have said is You know all four of these things don't necessarily operate in order Sometimes, uh, you know, just like you're riding a you're you're driving a stick You got to press more gas at one time and then ease up on the clutch I think that there are ingredients and uh, sometimes it's all about grace Sometimes it's all about grace, but I feel that you know, I also wouldn't want that to be used as an excuse Um, it's gotta be you know, there's gotta be accountability, too So no the order isn't necessarily We could grace could be one Uh, I would say this though I think That it's helpful to Have an analysis Either first or in tandem with the work that you do because I've just seen so many missteps Uh, and even when you're working to have an analysis Then we you know, then the question is well for goodness sakes. What analysis does that person have? I mean, there's just so much work to do. You know what I mean? So I would say that would be the only one that if you asked me Uh, is there an order to it? I would say, yeah I know there's a lot to be done and we can do a lot and continue to do as much as possible and keep strengthening your analysis and uh, for me some of the biggest mistakes that I've seen in National programs educational programs are well intended and they are officially hot messes So I think that that's that's why I say that but yeah, no grace. We should we could lead with grace grace all the time Grace more grace. I think that we Like you heard me say it's very easy to um And I understand when you do this work when you all are in the communities when you all are Trying to hold folks accountable and speak truth to power It's easy to really stand on principle so hard sometimes that You know, you're by yourself. You're right And you're by yourself. So that's what I mean by the grace piece Hi I um, had a question About what kind of advice you could give to the people of color in the room um For me, uh, my understanding of intersectionality is connected to A deeper understanding that oppression is interconnected And whether we are uh people of color gay queer differently abled gender non-conforming our experiences of these intersectionalities Are emotional and related to pain and suffer and not necessarily an opportunity So when we come to this crossroads of intersectional conversations How can the people of color in this room walk to this road? Uh to feel like they will meet the counterpart at this crossroad that we're being provided this week And how uh, can we uh, I guess, uh, have these conversations so that they are not a car crash But a meeting What's your advice I guess that's my question Yeah, you know, I was just gonna say well, I don't give advice But I I want to say I want to share something about my experience. I could do that Um, and I feel I feel you Uh I feel you because I think that every time we have these conversations Uh, particularly people of color, uh folks who are experiencing the thing Um as we're talking about the thing we're experiencing the thing and we're being re-injured Particularly folks who are pushed to the margins in our lived experiences We show up for these conversations with people who have very good intentions And then we get re-injured and re-injured and they're microaggressions jumping off all over the place I guess what I would say is that First and foremost and I used to not always say this and I say it now Because of my own lived experience and the experiences of others I think that it is important to prioritize self-care and I know when we have these conversations We try to do them in such a way that um We don't uh that the uh people of color Or the non-binary folks or the folks who are the most um targeted Um, uh aren't used. They're not used in those conversations. Um Uh To service and to educate The folks with the most uh privilege and the folks with the most entitlement to comfort and all of what that takes So I know that there are ways to set up containers for those conversations That don't privilege the people with the most power in the room or the most privilege in the room that uh Their comfort just doesn't get to dictate everything I think that's one thing, you know, if you can go into it with those kind of ground rules those kind of group agreements And your your own self-care is going to be really important One of the things that I do that we you know, we started to do And back when we started to do it. I think there was some A tiny maybe a little bit of controversy that year in San Diego with those affinity groups Um, but I think that there is something helpful About having that affinity space Um for people with an acute outsider experience that affinity space allows you to breathe And you do have to do it in some interesting ways where you because you know We're not going to be able to compartmentalized our our identities But you show up to the the poc space and you have a conversation about the intersection of gender and sexual identity In that space, but they that there that it is okay to have those affinity conversations Um in complicated kind of matrices, you know I think that is helpful The other thing that I think is really helpful because race is such a marker and it is So pernicious and so it shows up in every single aspect of these conversations Everyone right every aspect of identity There's race just add race to it You know disability and race class and race age and race All of them race is huge and so expect to Contend with that in every single solitary conversation And I think because of it. What is most helpful Is to have um at the ready A nice little group of white anti-racist And deploy them strategically That's you know, I I used to for a long time Uh, particularly when I was really really angry in my um early 20s doing anti-racist work I used to say it is not my job to educate white people. I'm not going to be educating white people No, no, no, and now what do I do? I work with a whole bunch of white people We educate and we're trying to educate white people to be anti-racist A whole little so I I do think that that is a strategy is um, you know It's just a coincidence white people listen to white people about race more than they do people of color So we just need And I don't think that's the only way there are 355 million different ways and we need to use all those approaches But I think one is to have Really incredible anti-racist white folks to speak truth to power and to use them strategically Deploy them send them out there um, let them um, you know, just like uh at ferguson when the the um folks were organizing in ferguson and The police would start getting ready to assault And uh, the leaders would say John brown they would yell john brown into the crowd And all the white allies would come and stand in between the police and people of color. That's what we need We need white folks who are clear about how Racism is at work and are willing to deploy themselves. Is that helpful? That's a little bit. Thank you. That's a little bit There's some there. There's some more stuff too, but I Thank you for that question and I want other folks to respond too because you only doing this work You know what it feels like and looks like There's a conversation. I just wanted to To add to that. Um, there have always been white folks There have always been people of all That have um Been working together towards freedom and justice. So I think like We need to keep that in in our history like the fact that in ferguson people were yelling john brown, right? Like that that's because That that's a that's a real person who existed and was uh in solidarity and in work and I think in Movements for justice and freedom My experience has been there's always been a multicultural solidarity And connectiveness that exists and so if that Isn't the experience that you're having it's maybe because you're not operating in that way and and moot assata Shakur Was freed from prison and the way she got out was white women were driving that van It wasn't black panthers who were driving that van and so I think that's always existed in Movements for justice Agreed. Absolutely. I hope I didn't say anything other than that. Uh, absolutely. I think that we just need to keep um That tradition uh, because what I do I'm in agreement with you I have a all my white friends are anti-racist. I'm very familiar with anti-racist white people It's just a coincidence all of my friends that are white are anti-racist. Um, but I would say that I'm I'm I'm aware I'm aware of that tradition. Um, absolutely starting all the way back from the abolitionists Um, what I don't see happening though is oftentimes I don't see white people afraid As aware of that history and leading from that Perspective oftentimes I see white people leading from a different, you know, like what's my role? What's my voice? Where should I intersect? What do I do help me? And I think that there is a history of um anti-racist white activism. I'm in agreement with you. Absolutely Yeah, exactly Exactly. Absolutely. Absolutely. Claim that history. It's a powerful one. Absolutely. Thank you for that Sorry. Yeah, I just want to say this as As a person of color. So I'm I'm a black woman I'm from the south side of Chicago. I also have some people know I have a hidden disability So intersectionality is a huge part of my life And I was lucky enough to get that training and that analysis In my early 20s with training with the People's Institute and starting to work on social justice and community organizing But I really just want to want to Emphasize that for me It is not enough for the people in this room to have a shared analysis It is not enough for the people in this room to have a shared analysis in the communities that we work with to have a shared analysis The institutions that we work in Also have to have that analysis and there is nothing more re-injuring more Retraumatizing than to be in a community working for racial justice on behalf of a theater And then to go back into that theater institution experience the same racism the same sexism The same ableism the same heteronormativity the same classism It it really puts the people of color in your institutions who are doing this work in an awful position psychologically Emotionally spiritually So I really want you to think about that especially the white folks in this room Can you push for your institutions to have that edi training the anti-racist facilitation? You know, whatever whatever that looks like for your organization and in your communities It's it's so important that organizations not only focus externally, but also look internally as well so Some of this is absolutely amazing what's being said here, but you're preaching to the choir You're preaching to the choir and so my question is What strategies can you suggest or that we can talk about? that will Intersect with people who are not part of the choir in other words We saw this wonderful player standing on last night And it was preaching to the choir the people who need to see that the people that that play needs to intersect with How do we Reach people who are not receptive to begin with because those are the people i'm thinking We really need to intersect with those are the people we need to reach out to not I will bet you that 98 percent of the people in this room if you took a poll are all on the same page so Where do we go from there? Yeah, I don't I hear people saying maybe not Be on the same page But we may so there's a difference between the power that we share why we're building our analysis And you know the good old boys club, right? Which for me and i'm i'm glad this is where the conversation is going because I again It is preaching to the choir and some people just opted not to show up to choir rehearsal, right? Because they have their own separate meeting and I let me frame this by saying I love tcg. I love the staff Hey, teres. I love you. Um But you know, there's this separate meeting called the governance conference, right where the room looks very different the conversation is very different um And and i've only been one year. I said frame that But I don't think there's an integration of the conversation that we're having today in the same way um, so there is another choir rehearsal in another meeting um Where the good old boys show up? Um, and they have a conversation So what I would like to see and be a part of and think through that strategy to where some of these convenings Um, you know, we can be having the same conversation and affecting the power structure, right? So understanding the power that we hold as people we can be decision influences But the decision makers show up in a totally different room And have a totally different Conversation and they are happy to send Other staff to have this conversation because they don't have to be I have a story to tell but I want to get other questions. Thank you. Thank you I just like to add to that that the assumption that we are all singing the same note as well in this room Is an assumption as well That we are all at different levels at this choir And we just heard from someone who's a person of color explaining what that feels like So even within community Defining what community a lot of us know that community engagement means just bringing people of color to your theater And we are here and we're at the forefront because we are protecting our communities So even with the assumption that we all come with goodwill. We're all at different levels in this room Um, so I just do want to throw that out there. Yeah, no, I appreciate that. I appreciate that I I would I would agree. I don't I have just never been in a room where we are all Sharing the same analysis and have the same level of experience with these conversations. I think that we're just yeah, so I appreciate that um, so again, I think just branching off and and slightly it's a I think to address the question that was asked With all everything else that has been said in mind like I just think it To a certain extent these things have to start becoming non-negotiables And conversations like if if the conversation remains like hey, this is the education everyone should get and not hey This is the every the education that we're all going to have to get to operate like then it's still negotiable and I I mean the organization I work at is not perfect But I do appreciate the fact that it is it is a non-negotiable that these conversations are taking place in some way And the results are not always something that I'm like, I like that But at least I'm like I've made my point enough for the fact that I see Documented change and there's a timeline for when I expect to see the final results of the situation And maybe that's not an option for everyone um But there have to be processes involved where these things are just non-negotiable so that this is not just talk anymore because then I think I don't know like I long story short. I work in prevention And I think Milwaukee has seen it's one of its largest outbreaks, but it's been a long time coming because it's been consistent talk and It's nice to see people like oh, we're committed to this But again, like the people who are affected are not on the tv screen. They're not being talked to um And like it still feels like this is a negotiable conversation about having race going to talk about prevention Instead of okay. Now that we it's documented. You got your numbers even though like theory has said this forever What are the non-negotiable steps we're going to take to address it so that was just my So I want to pick back up the the conversation quickly. I don't I think we're getting close to time about um You know who's in the room and who needs to get the who should be in the room for these conversations And this is where it gets really this is the challenge, you know, I I said Well, there are 355 million ways to do this work and we got to do all of them take all the approach every which way I so this is the This is what is very difficult because I Believe me. I give a lot of thought to this and I try to figure out How do we do this work with some measure of integrity? We don't keep re-inscribing the same thing Over and over again, uh, and I'm not saying that this is right For goodness sakes if everybody you know, I'm not going to be the person to fix all of this So I mean we're in this together, right? So I'm going to put something out here I don't know that it's right, but I'm just sharing with you what I'm thinking of what we've been trying to do One thing is to take a multifaceted approach. So, uh, for example The work with, um Some of the training institutions now, um that ysd And brown trinity and some others are creating Core competency around this issue so that the generation of folks coming out of these Learning institutions who can impact the field, uh, will be different. So at, uh, Yale school of drama every single solitary student in that Program has to have this conversation. It's now core competency All the faculty and staff have to have this training. It's mandatory That's one place to start to change the culture the same thing at brown trinity all of the all of the students in that Master's program have to have this as a core competency Um, it's moving into more and more institutions. Juilliard all of the students Well, just the drama division all of the students there have to have this So there's what we're so what we're what we're proposing is there's no way to be an effective leader I mean right now we can we're just working with the yards, but Pretty much you can't be an effective leader period if this is not a core competency You don't have these values and the facility to have these conversations If not, you know, you're um, you're doing more harm the the potential you're injuring people So we are building a base of understanding and there are some examples of how these folks it takes time To plant these seeds and then to see the next generation of leaders moving into a different conversation So that's one thing. The other thing I want to say is um, I uh, so here's another Example a group of folks. They're donors. It's a group of they're about 25 folks. They Donate to a very large theater and they So they are they're they're donors and so I had an opportunity to talk to these donors and every time I have an opportunity To talk to donors and they say well, what should we do? I say to them You should organize yourselves as as donors and work to end racism and don't you know They organized themselves as donors and they are now working to end racism. So What i'm saying is there are lots of different models. There are lots of different point of entries these folks now There's 25 of them. And yes, they're all white And are folks of a certain age. They're probably all over 50 And they give a lot of money to this one theater and now they are organized not just as donors But they are organized as donors who are anti-racist who who are trying to be anti-racist And and by the way, this is if you want to be a part of that group if you want to You know join that that donor group they say to them first and foremost, you got to go to the people's institute Um, you can't be a part of our group This is an all-white group of people giving a lot of money to um a institute, you know a theater and For them for you to be a part of the conversation with them You've got to go to the people's institute to get anti-racism training Then you can come to our meetings so that you can be a part of our conversation About how to disrupt this and how to support this theater in its own racism That's one example of what it might look like getting these folks to Address it from this avenue. Okay, so we got these donors all organized now and trying to do that Then we've got folks inside of the academy All organized getting folks, you know, I don't I don't know I'm saying that it's got to be multi-faceted multi-pronged And then all of us individually have to do our part But yeah, it's a it's a lot of work Okay, I think uh, I'm looking for maybe one more. Oh, yeah. Hey karmann um I just wanted to put out into the space Accountability as a word that I actually and this is my own personal opinion. I work for an organization, but this is my personal expression at this moment That I I actually don't feel that we are on the same page I think there is a lot of forward movement and a lot of alignment and purpose But I think if we really sat down and talked about what Any of this language means we would have different analysis If somebody went through p sub and people's institute, which is a very in-your-face kind of training Really different from other types of training So I I I worry that we're kind of Equalizing it all and saying we're all coming from the same analysis. Well, actually we're not depending on what your lineage is And what your training is I think it's incumbent on us to have a variety of types of experiences and work with a lot of different kinds of Trainers and facilitators to broaden the expanse and the view I I worry that a lot of people are saying well I've done edi and I training and then it's edi and I it's like anti-racism light right right And I I'm really worried about that because I think the deep deep work is is so much more than that Absolutely, and it's connected to the accountability that we have to ourselves the accountability that we have to each other And the the accountability that we have to our communities. I'm a person of color I'm Filipino and so the accountability to my community Personally the accountability to my family the accountability to the people I work with the accountability on many many levels And it's so nuanced and I am such an infant In the accountability journey, but I really challenge us all to really meditate on that and see Okay, well, what truly is your analysis and who are you accountable to and what are you saying to the people that you're accountable to Right. Absolutely. Absolutely. Thank you, Amelia Whoever had the last question, yes I think I saw the mic over there There's somebody over there that do you want to respond? Okay, you know, maybe I'm overly optimistic But I do believe that there's going to come a I feel like we're we're already shifting in some respect where Uh, the question is no longer going to be This art needs to Meet a particular standard or be At be at a particular a particular bar Or to be vetted in a different way because it's dealing with social justice issues I I feel that the opposite is going to happen, which is that Folks are coming to the table Audiences are showing up. We the community is demanding a greater level of consciousness in what is being produced So I feel that what's going to happen is that folks are going to say Um, great costumes, great lighting, but we're not standing for this anymore We're not going to put up with with this anymore. Uh, folks are protesting like folks will be out front and have been out front We're not going to deal with cultural appropriation anymore. That's done. That's over when I I feel that that's starting to happen More and more um that folks are there's some honestly folks I think that there's going to be some work that we just don't do anymore that we're actually going to say We we can no longer do this work anymore. We this isn't who we are. We've evolved. We have to keep evolving Um, that's what I think is happening And this I'm not saying that this is the the right approach In fact, I'm not I wouldn't necessarily advocate for this, but my approach has been I just I just want to right now and maybe it's because I'm um, you know They sent me my aarp card the other day and I feel like I'm just getting to the place where I feel like I'm so I just want to work with the enthusiast You know, I'll work with the willing if I have to But I'm not going to work with the hostel. I feel like You are so going to be bringing up the rear It's a new day people You know, we have the millennials are the most diverse generation in the history the generation right behind them Or what is that? Is that the gen y? What's it? Is it the gen y? There's the z generation They are even more diverse We are approaching history We are already at the tipping point that says that we're going to have a tipping point. It's irreversible And we are not go our palette will not take The racist sexist uh homophobic We're not going to do it anymore. So I feel that the I feel that the the shift is going to be Not is this art Going to Appeal to our artistic palette. I think that the shift is going to be Are you going to speak to our humanity? And and and not continue to dehumanize us. I think that that's the shift. I I'm hoping for I'm feeling optimistic. It will happen Yeah Absolutely Well folks I feel like this might be it. Yeah Thank you. What a great room of folks. I guess this is the choir Thank you all Thank you all We are going to just give you some quick announcements. We're actually going to dismiss our dinner group posts to go on out into the rotunda Um, and we will meet you all out there. Thank you Um I'm Courtney Mcnari. I'm the oh gosh. No. Oh my gosh. No I'm the director of community engagement here We are privileged and honored to have you in our space and our microphones don't like to be next to each other but we like each other um And uh our intention this weekend is to make this a welcome space for you We recognize that our impact might not always meet that we hope that in any ways that we screw up that um If you can communicate with us in whatever way feels comfortable to you. We hope to uh To Solve problems as we can. So we are your problem solvers for the weekend We want to be as hospitable as we possibly can because we are just thrilled that you are here That these conversations are starting and that you're visiting our beautiful city. So thank you for being here We have just a few announcements for you So after dinner tonight, we're about to move into our dinner groups and I know some of you may not have dinner groups Oh, I'm jenny tutant. By the way, I'm the education director here and welcome. Thank you for being here Um What we are going to do is uh after dinner come back here for the performance of until the flood After act two of the performance, which we hope you will join those dialogues We will be meeting in our stackner cabaret for a reception and really important In your folder free drink tickets Okay, so please do not lose those. Hey the stackner cabaret after this performance You're going to go out into the lobby and then around just to the left outside Some people have been calling it the golden staircase. It's our escalators that will lead you to the stackner cabaret Where we will gather If you signed up for a dinner group, they are on the back of your name tag Unless you have other instructions, some of you did not sign up for a dinner group Which is totally great and we hope you go and enjoy milwaukee. It's there's lots of good food But if you did sign up for a dinner group, your hosts will be out in the lobby holding signs that coordinate with your name tag Um, that's great. Uh, if I can just ask that other folks stay in their seats I know some people have to get out, but we just want to get you these announcements as quickly as we can Tomorrow you have our list of things that we have to tell people. Um tomorrow In the morning, we will be meeting in the quadrachi powerhouse, which is up the marble staircase It's something to tell you that you need to go up the golden staircase or the marble staircase But the quadrachi powerhouse is up the marble staircase And that's where we'll meet in the morning starting at we are starting at nine So please get here a little bit before if we messed up your name tag or if we messed something else up We will have your correct documents in the morning. So just know that you can pick those up then If you have an issue with any of your tickets, uh, I'll be standing outside of the steam key tonight Right before until the flood with a bunch of tickets just to make sure everybody gets the seat that they need So if you have any problems, please find me For that Great. And without further ado, we're going to release you. Oh wait, wait, wait. Sorry one more thing before we go. Oh, Amelia Thanks, Amelia. One last thing. I would uh, we'll two last things I would love for our interns for the weekend to please stand. We have alaina monts Connor finnegan and rlk These folks are here's alaina down here. These folks are incredible They are people you will want to hire in just a few years So get to know them. They're giving up their time and energy this weekend. Finally speaking of giving them time and energy I would love for the members of our planning committee to make themselves known in the room and for us to acknowledge all the work that they put into this Thank you all for being here. If you have any questions come find me. Thank you Great. All right, uh, very quickly go ahead and find your sign If you did not sign up for a dinner group and you want to meet in front of the coffee cart to see if anybody else Would like to join you for dinner have at it We'll see you at the show tonight