Supporting Artists at the Border

Practicing responsive and responsible philanthropy

Tuesday, October 15, 2:00pm – 3:20pm

Organized and moderated by Caitlin Strokosch, president & CEO, National Performance Network.

Presented by Jaime Dempsey, executive director, Arizona Commission on the Arts; Maggie Laredo, co-founder, Poch@ House, Otros Dreamers; Adriana Gallego, chief operating officer, National Association of Latino Arts and Cultures (NALAC); M. Jenea Sanchez, artist, educator, community leader; and Robert Uribe, mayor, City of Douglas, Arizona.

With increased attention to the U.S.-Mexico border, artists, arts organizations, and funders are interested in engaging with border communities and addressing immigration and border issues through their work. This session will challenge arts funders to ask how this work can be done responsively and responsibly – from honoring the lived experience of border and immigrant communities to seeking new and existing partners with deep, authentic relationships (especially when funders are providing resources from afar). We will invite arts funders to reimagine and expand their efforts on how investment is made across communities. How can arts funders play a role in culturally sustaining initiatives rather than short-term one-offs? This session will also offer ways in which bureaucratic and legal hurdles can be navigated, as well as how arts funders can respond with nimbleness and empathy to pressing social issues.