A Call for Courage: DEIBA in Arts and Culture
In recent months and days, we’ve witnessed significant attacks against Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, Belonging, and Accessibiltity (DEIBA) initiatives across the United States, including attacks on invaluable arts and culture institutions.
The Trump administration narrowed the National Endowment for the Arts’ budget and scope, cutting grant opportunities for programs that support diversity initiatives and historically excluded communities. They also moved to dismantle the Institute of Museum and Library Services, a key funding source for museums, zoos, aquariums, botanical gardens, and historic sites. On Wednesday, The Kennedy Center—to which Trump recently appointed himself the chairman—was forced to lay off its entire Social Impact team. On Thursday, the Smithsonian and others became the next target of federal DEI initiative erasure. Repressive moves like these threaten the very fabric of inclusivity that the arts strive to uphold, and the rich history of arts and culture in the United States
These actions represent a concerted effort to undermine meaningful progress toward creating an arts and culture community that reflects and serves everyone.
Our firm’s response is to stand strong in our commitment to DEIBA for our team and our industry:
- Diversity: to ensure that multiple perspectives are represented, fostering empathy, understanding, and innovation.
- Equity: to remove barriers and create opportunities tailored to individuals’ needs.
- Inclusion: to actively invite and uplift all voices, not only a privileged few. As Zabeen Hirji said: “Diversity is a fact, inclusion is an act.”
- Belonging: to foster spaces where all people feel valued, seen, and empowered to contribute.
- Accessibility: to ensure that everyone, regardless of ability, can fully participate and engage.
Arts and culture have always been a mirror of society, seeking to reflect our collective struggles, triumphs, and the rich tapestry of the human experience. To strip away DEIBA initiatives is to silence voices and deprive audiences of the full spectrum of artistic expression, truth, and humanity.
Leading and Consulting with Courage
In unprecedented and uncertain times, fear is often a prevailing sentiment. In support of our industry, we choose to lead with determination.
We pledge to consult courageously for our clients, navigating the complexities of the landscape without compromising their values.
At Capacity Interactive, our mission is to help arts, culture, events, and attractions embrace a robust digital strategy that keeps the pace of the current digital landscape and leverages today’s tools to engage communities, build and sustain audiences, and drive revenue for the future. Central to this mission are our values:
- We partner generously
- We act with integrity
- We strive for excellence
- We celebrate our differences
- We are always in beta
These values, which you can read in full here, are the principles that guide our actions every day. DEIBA is deeply interwoven into the fabric of CI because our collective is entitled to nothing less—as all people are.
Unlike the non-profit institutions we serve, CI does not directly rely on government funding or contributed income, so we do not face the same financial vulnerabilities as those who do. We are honored to take a stand in support of DEIBA, especially in support of those who cannot. We call upon other privileged institutions and leaders who can afford similar bravery to join us in this stance. Not everyone can afford to speak out in the same way. We stand in solidarity with those navigating these challenging times.
The instability our sector faces is formidable, and the tide of regression is fierce, but our resolve is stronger.
Together, let us champion arts and culture as a space of diversity, equity, inclusion, belonging, and accessibility—a true reflection of our world and its people.
