Anti-Racism Statement & Incident Reporting

Chicago Dramatists
Commitment to anti-racism.

During the Summer of 202, a group of Balck, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) theatre colleagues came together to create WE See You, White American Theater. They issued a "comprehensive but by no means exhaustive" list of demands with the goal of creating an anti-racist theatre community. Chicago Dramatists acknowledges and thanks our colleagues for their great effort. The We See You demands provided an additional frame for the work that we had already begun. The WSYT demands also guided us in making sure that we do much more than make empty statements that do nothing to eradicate the systemic racism that pervades in American Theatre.

Chicago Dramatists commits to making impactful and essential changes. For accountability and transparency, we will provide regular updates on our anti-racist work on our website and additional communications. The following is in no way the exhaustive list:

Education:
Add Diversity, Equity & Inclusion (DEI) and anti-racism trainings as a line item in the budget.
Add ongoing, repeatable DEI and anti-racism trainings that specifically address arts and theatre for Board, staff, and the broader Chicago Dramatists community.
Continue and expand our DEI class series.

Represent:
Increase representation in governance; to hire BIPOC in staff positions.
Strengthen our infrastructure by aligning the Diversity Advisory Committee with the Human Resources Committee to provide clear reporting and accountability.

Showcase:
Ensure Out the Box remains a yearly showcase of BIPOC playwrights and their work with specific measures being taken to amplify Black and Indigenous playwrights.
Create relationships with BIPOC theatre groups and allow use of our space when available.

Acknowledge:
Add land acknowledgements to our website, lobby, and programs and other measures to amplify and honor indigenous people.
Continue and expand our Access fellowship program.

To contact our Diversity Advisory and Human Resources departments regarding our commitment, please email CDCares@chicagodramatists.org.

To learn more about We See You, White American Theater, click the button below.

We See You, White American Theater

To submit an incident report, email CDCares@chicagodramatists.org or use the contact form below.

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