“The most common way people give up their power is by thinking they don’t have any.” —Alice Walker
In a 24/7 studio space, we rely heavily on people speaking up and intervening when something isn’t right. And it works; overall, our space is safer, more welcoming and more trusting when each artist takes it upon themselves to see, name and act when they notice wrongdoing.
But how do we apply this same logic and care to situations outside of our tiny artist microcosm, particularly when it applies to things that are so far out of our realm of lived experience?
The first step is to recognize that we are all bound to one another and that our freedom and dignity are inextricably linked.
In moments of dehumanization and egregious abuses of power, we must hold to what writer Sarah Schulman calls “the bottom line,” that “all human beings, by virtue of birth, deserve equal rights, self-determination and access to opportunity.” Unequivocally. Without any clauses and without the need for expertise in the issue at hand (an illusory concept, at best).
We grieve for the Israeli lives lost, damaged, and violently harmed by Hamas on Oct. 7, 2023. We also grieve for the 25,000 plus Palestinians who have been killed by Israel’s (and the United States) indiscriminate bombing of civilians. Entire communities have been demolished; blood lines erased.
What is happening in Palestine is wrong and it must end.
This is not a zero sum game– recognizing one injustice does not negate the other. Naming what is happening to Palestinians for what it is – genocide – is not equal to a tacit endorsement of harm, murder, rape or antisemitism. Anyone who claims that solidarity with Palestinians is an endorsement of those things is acting in bad faith and you cannot be responsible for their projections. Indeed, that would be of great disservice to all of our Jewish friends, neighbors and community members who are standing up against this injustice and calling for a ceasefire.
Our community organizations and institutions must speak up.
On Wednesday, Jan. 24 we hosted a Community Print Day. Over the course of four hours, more than 150 people made T-shirts, banners and posters in solidarity with Palestine. Mothers and children pulled screen prints together, neighbors chatted, and some folks generously stuck around to help clean up. It felt like a normal day at Studio Two Three.
The next morning, we opened our email to this message from a concerned community member who had also cc’d four random program officers from the National Endowment for the Arts (presumably in an effort to get our federal funding revoked):
Hello,
I am writing to you to express distress over your upcoming Community Print Day event featuring the “Free Palestine” sign. As someone who has lived in Israel and is deeply affected by the war, seeing these signs gives me a lot of anxiety. A “Free Palestine” does not necessarily mean a continued state of Israel as per the demands of Hamas. I do respect the humanitarian message behind the Free Palestine movement, I wish there was a way to actually help its people. The current political situation there, on both sides, does not always seem to feel the same way.
Regardless of my personal views, I am of the understanding that your funding, both through tax dollars and private sources, do not allow for the support of political activities. I am writing you to request that you consider this for the future of cultivated art and experiences within your studio for the safety of community members like-minded to myself.
Thank you for taking the time to read this email.
With gratitude,
[NAME REDACTED]
And below, our response:
Hello –––,
Thanks for reaching out and for sharing your concerns.
As a nonprofit organization, we are prohibited from participating directly in election campaigns. We are not prohibited from political activities or from representing artist perspectives, as an artist run and driven organization. This is a commonly held misunderstanding about the role and function of nonprofit organizations.
Your logic about political activities is the same logic that was used during the Culture Wars, which directly resulted in the censorship of artists and a substantial reduction in federal funding to the NEA in the 1990s. We’ve always loved this quote from JFK:
“If sometimes our great artists have been the most critical of our society, it is because their sensitivity and their concern for justice, which must motivate any true artist, makes him aware that our nation falls short of its highest potential. I see little of more importance to the future of our country and our civilization than full recognition of the place of the artist.
If art is to nourish the roots of our culture, society must set the artist free to follow his vision wherever it takes him. We must never forget that art is not a form of propaganda; it is a form of truth. And as Mr. MacLeish once remarked of poets, there is nothing worse for our trade than to be in style. In free society art is not a weapon and it does not belong to the spheres of polemic and ideology. Artists are not engineers of the soul. It may be different elsewhere. But democratic society–in it, the highest duty of the writer, the composer, the artist is to remain true to himself and to let the chips fall where they may. In serving his vision of the truth, the artist best serves his nation. And the nation which disdains the mission of art invites the fate of Robert Frost’s hired man, the fate of having “nothing to look backward to with pride, and nothing to look forward to with hope.”
As an organization, our mission is to empower artists to make art and make change.
Our vision is to strive for a world in which the power of art is willingly and joyfully harnessed for personal, social, and systemic change.
Yesterday’s printmaking day was aligned with both our mission and vision and was held respectfully with open doors. We’re sorry to hear that it brought you anxiety. We recognize that not every position we hold is accepted by all members of our community but we feel strongly about standing behind our principles, values and beliefs.
You are always welcome at Studio Two Three and we hope that another event or activity will speak to your values.
Kind regards,
Kate, Ashley & KB
We shared the above exchange on Instagram – and are now sharing it here – because we want our nonprofit peers to feel empowered to stand in their values, to name genocide as wrong (period!) and to not be silenced by threats of defunding or loss of status. The misconception that nonprofits are prohibited from promoting a political perspective is patently untrue. Nonprofit organizations can take a stance on broad political issues –– in fact, many are founded to address these very things.
Our communities face a much greater risk if their institutions forego their principles and deeply held beliefs out of fear of reprisal, particularly if these institutions benefit from the public good.
It’s never easy to speak up in the midst of complex political moments, but we believe in following your personal ick test. Take a moment to think about what’s happening in Palestine and the impact of your silence on your local community. How must it feel to be Palestinian in Richmond, Virginia in 2024? Do you feel in your gut that what is happening in Palestine is wrong? Then speak up!
In the words of the late, great James Baldwin: “Not everything that is faced can be changed, but nothing can be changed until it’s faced.” Let’s face this together! If you’d like to join a growing list of Virginia arts and cultural organizations and artists who are standing up to the threat of defunding, a loss of status and the wrath of online commentators, you can sign our open letter calling for a permanent cease fire in Gaza here. You can see other signatories as they join, here. Also there is a RVA March for Palestine which will be held on Sunday, Jan. 28 at 2 p.m., leaving from Monroe Park.
You have power to make change, if you believe it.
With best intentions and a belief in necessity of the artist’s voice,
Kate Fowler, Ashley Hawkins and KB Brown
Opinions expressed in the commentary section are those of the author(s) and not necessarily those of Style Weekly or VPM.
