Statement on Cultural Equity
To support a full creative life for all, The Union for Contemporary Art commits to championing policies and practices of cultural equity that empower a just, inclusive, equitable community.
Definition of Cultural Equity
Cultural equity embodies the values, policies, and practices that ensure all people—including but not limited to those who have been historically underrepresented based on race/ethnicity, age, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity, socioeconomic status, geography, citizenship status, or religion—are represented in the development of arts programming; the support of artists; the nurturing of accessible, thriving venues for expression; and the fair distribution of financial and informational resources.
Acknowledgements & Affirmations
- In the United States, there are systems of power that grant privilege and access unequally such that inequity and injustice result, and that must be continuously addressed and changed.
- Cultural equity is critical to the long-term viability of the arts sector.
- We must all hold ourselves accountable, because acknowledging and challenging our inequities and working in partnership is how we will make change happen.
- Everyone deserves equal access to a full, vibrant creative life, which is essential to a healthy and democratic society.
- The prominent presence of artists challenges inequities and encourages alternatives.
Modeling Through Action
To provide informed, authentic leadership for cultural equity, we strive to…
- Pursue cultural consciousness throughout our organization through substantive learning and formal, transparent policies.
- Acknowledge and dismantle any inequities within our policies, systems, programs, and services, and report organization progress.
- Commit time and resources to expand more diverse leadership within our board, staff, and advisory bodies.
Fueling Field Progress
To pursue needed systemic change related to equity, we strive to…
- Encourage substantive learning to build cultural consciousness and to proliferate pro-equity policies and practices by all of our constituencies and audiences.
- Improve the cultural leadership pipeline by creating and supporting programs and policies that foster leadership reflective of our diverse and vibrant community.
- Generate and aggregate quantitative and qualitative research related to equity to make incremental, measurable progress toward cultural equity more visible.
Advocate for public and private-sector policy that promotes cultural equity.
*Statement adapted from practices outlined by Americans for the Arts.