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Health & Fitness

Let's Mobilize!

September is here! After a restful summer, things at BCC are kicking off as school starts and rehearsal begins. As always, there is a lot going on—new ideas are brewing as the season unfolds. I’ve written before about the refocus on our integrated mission, and the time is now upon us to begin this new phase.

One thing that’s definitely on our radar is the upcoming mayoral election. It’s so important to have a candidate in office that is arts-friendly and will support the ever-growing Boston arts community. Mass Creative, an arts advocacy group recently spearheaded a new initiative called #CreateTheVote to mobilize “arts voters”, i.e. anyone who sees arts as a priority. On this coming Monday, September 9th there will be a forum on arts, culture, and creativity with mayoral candidates. This is a fantastic opportunity to mobilize and show our candidates that we are serious about their commitment to maintaining and growing Boston’s cultural fabric.

With that in mind, I was reminded of a recently published op-ed in The New York Times by columnist Charles M. Blow called “’The Most Dangerous Negro.’” The reference is to Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., and the article goes on to pose an important question: what happened to American activism?

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Election seasons are opportunities just waiting to be seized, and serve as a potential for a reinvigoration of “American activism.” As activists in the arts community (and with the recognition that, of course, activism takes on many shapes and forms), we recognize that the upcoming forum, the #CreateTheVote movement, and the mayoral election in November are great ways to reinforce OUR commitment--not just simply demand it of our politicians. We as a community will be taken seriously only if we mobilize, so let’s get going.

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More information on the upcoming on the Boston Mayoral Candidate Forum on Arts, Culture, and Creativity can be found by clicking here. 

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