Office of Arts and Culture receives $15K grant from the Government Alliance on Race and Equity (GARE) Innovation and Implementation Fund

The Office of Arts and Culture (OAC) in partnership with the Department of Code Compliance was awarded a $15,000 project grant from the Government Alliance on Race and Equity (GARE) Summer 2020 Innovation and Implementation Fund. GARE is a national network of government working to achieve racial equity and advance opportunities for all. The project grant will use arts and culture to confront structural racism through the pilot Re:Imagine Vacancy project.

The Re:Imagine Vacancy project will transform an abandoned lot in southern Dallas into a temporary sculpture garden in partnership with the Department of Code Compliance, local students, and artists. The majority of the GARE grant will go to stipends paying the artists and youth who work on this project.

“Advancing racial equity is about policies, practices, and procedures that improve outcomes,” says City Manager, T.C. Broadnax. “The Re: Imagine Vacancy project advances equity through arts and culture in the community.”

The priorities for this round of the GARE fund, made possible by the Sundra Foundation, include advancing true and just reflections of racial history, pushing forward work that has been done or is being done to advance racial equity and concentrating on the experiences and leadership of communities most impacted by racial injustice, including artists of color and arts organizations.

“We are grateful to have been selected as one of six jurisdictions nationally and for the opportunity to pilot new solutions to advance racial equity in collaboration with artists and local neighborhoods,” says Director of the Office of Arts and Culture , Jennifer Scripps.

Re: Imagine Vacancy will pilot an artist-led effort to address recommendations made by the Mayor’s Task Force on Safe Communities, specifically around remediating blight and enabling individuals to serve as “violence interrupters.” The project hopes to demonstrate that the solutions to neighborhood or community issues can center on the residents’ own stories and ability to self-define their strategy. Ideally, this pilot can be replicated to highlight more neighborhood identities, boosting Dallas’ identity to locals and visitors alike.

“Arts is a vital way to build and tell the stories of a community. This project will allow the community to tell their own stories through an artistic narrative,” says Chief of Equity and Inclusion Liz Cedillo-Pereira. “As a City, we look forward to additional innovative ideas to address structural racism and advance equity.”

Learn more about the Office of Arts and Culture (OAC) and Code Compliance at dallascityhall.com.