We pull through by pulling together. We take care of each other. We are stronger together. We may be apart but we are profoundly connected. We need one another as friends, partners, brothers and sisters. We need each other. Stand together and sing with us in Solidarity.
In this time of crisis, we need to inspire people’s generosity and community spirit. We need to help people understand our interdependence and embrace an abundance mindset. Caretaking is the backbone of a healthy society. Now is the time to show up for one another.
Words have power
And who will join this standing up and the ones who stood without sweet company will sing and sing back into the mountains and if necessary even under the sea we are the ones we have been waiting for – June Jordan
Dear artists, musicians, writers, poets, culture bearers, DJs, makers, storytellers and all who create art,
We are in an unprecedented moment of tectonic culture shift – a moment of extreme hardship but also of infinite possibility. The role of the artist has never been more important. Artists are the beacons who help us see the light in times of devastation. Artists expose hard truths, inspire new ideas and make the future we want feel possible, tangible, and inevitable. Artists activate the imagination, they soothe, comfort, and move to action. As a global society, we are mourning the loss of family and friends, as well as the loss of our ability to sustain ourselves. We are feeling the consequences of an economic system that continues to prioritize profits over people and the planet. We face the decimation of many of our art institutions and the spaces where we gathered – Yet in moments of disillusion and fractures, there is also an opportunity to sow ideas for a different kind of future. We are the creators of culture. We are the makers of fairy tales and myths. Our stories and our cultural expression shape societies and policies, and influence our own conceptions of ourselves and the world around us. Culture IS power. The narratives of capitalism that have propped up our system – narratives of domination and extraction from the planet, from workers, and from animals – are falling apart. This moment offers us an unprecedented opportunity to propagate the stories that will shape a more just and equitable future. Artists, let’s own our cultural power. Let’s leverage our songs, stories, images and creative superpowers to imagine and vision the future that we need. A future in which racism and colonization no longer exist, where we are in a regenerative relationship with nature, where we don’t exploit other life because we honor our interconnection and shared destinies. We are dedicated to organizing artists to build a collective cultural power towards social change and justice. To make sense of crisis in our own terms, through our own unique lens and experience, and to do what artists do best – create.
And to inspire connection between all beings. We hope we can inspire you to connect also. Together we can create the world we need.
We Need
• Stories of mutual aid, of resilience, of how people are helping their neighbors. • Stories of communities sharing resources and of wealth redistribution. • Stories that show we have enough when we share and when we prioritize our collective well being over our individual gain. • Stories that show our interdependence and how our survival depends on looking out for one another. • Stories of intergenerational and community caregiving that establish the culture of care that we need to hold on to even beyond this crisis.
• Stories that uplift the value of caregiving.
We are in this together – and we will get through this, together.
What this Might Look Like
• Posters with supportive slogans that folks can display in their windows. • Virtual dance parties or story hours for kids. • YouTube shows highlighting examples of mutual aid (i.e. Some Good News). • Buddy systems to provide emotional support. • Illustrations showing incarcerated people reuniting with families. • Digital memes offering mutual aid ideas. • An animated video illustrating a future where society centers a culture of care and interdependence, focusing on the story of a person who gives or receives care (i.e. an elder, a new parent, etc).
Get Inspired
Look at the world around you. There is inspiration in each detail. Let what’s in front of you inform you, teach you, lead you to higher ground. See the art, feel the culture and know that you are connected to the essence of it all. Together we can.
