For our full statement issued on June 17, 2020, click here.
As the Board and Staff of UNIT/PITT Society for Art and Critical Awareness, we unequivocally support Black, Indigenous and people of colour communities — including trans, Two-Spirit, queer and disabled people — in demanding justice for white supremacy-driven murders, and defunding police.
We would like to reaffirm our commitment to amplify and support the work of locally-based and emerging Black, Indigenous, people of colour, trans, Two-Spirit, queer and disabled artists and writers, and will additionally carry out the following actions in this 2020-21 program year:
- The Board of Directors commits to finalizing policies and procedures around communications, hiring practices, and recruiting for leadership positions on U/P’s Board of Directors and Working Committees, and making these documents available to artists and community members;
- Board and Staff commit to ongoing anti-racism and anti-oppression training;
- As part of that training, we commit to revisiting and contextualizing past exhibitions and publications that have caused and continue to cause harm to members of BIPOC, trans, Two-Spirit, queer and disabled communities;
- We commit to finalizing a Safer Spaces Policy for all venues where U/P is the host, that will prioritize the safety of BIPOC, trans, Two-Spirit, queer and disabled artists, volunteers and audience. This policy will clearly outline how to report incidents, and the process for acting on reports of racism and otherwise dangerous situations.
In 2021, U/P will issue a public statement that follows up on the progress of these actions.
