Sustaining Voices from the Battlefield: Community Grounded Cultural Arts Organizations @ 30 Conference

Friday, June 8 and Saturday, June 9th, 2007
Hosted by NYUs Tisch for the Arts, New York

The Caribbean Cultural Center/African Diaspora Institute (CCC) has been at the forefront of the community-grounded cultural movement that was pioneered in the 1970s. As we celebrate 30 years of history, we are bringing together other groundbreaking culturally grounded organizations, which have reached similar milestones, as well as young leaders of the community grounded cultural movement who are assuming the mantle now and in years to come. Our goal is to examine the impact these organizations have had in the cultural life of this country and how they have survived through often turbulent times. Further, we will look to the future to explore what mechanisms are needed to ensure their survival in the long term.

The Conference will feature a group of leaders from the African American, Latino, Asian, Native American, European American and Youth Movement sectors, who will be asked to observe what has happened, from their culture’s point of view, to the community grounded cultural movement.

On the evening of June 8^th, 2007, the Keynote speaker, Dr. Jack Tchen, Associate Professor of History; Director, Asian/Pacific-American Studies at New York University, will explore how the community grounded cultural movement grew up alongside the civil rights and other social justice movements.

Saturday, June 9^th will be a day long event with an opportunity to explore issues such as: