Creating New Futures: A Statement in Solidarity with Emily Johnson & Calls to Action

Creating New Futures, a group of arts workers engaged in co-creating working guidelines for ethics and equity in presenting dance and performance, has released a collectively-written statement of solidarity with Emily Johnson and have initiated a petition calling for:

1. Solidarity with artist Emily Johnson, in response to unethical, oppressive behavior defended by Montclair State University and Peak Performances.

2. Accountability from higher education and cultural institutions and the broader performing arts field to dismantle the oppressive colonial and racist systems that continue to hurt all of us.

The statement and petition follow Johnson’s Open Letter published January 22, 2021 entitled, A Letter I Hope in the Future, Doesn’t Need to Be Written, detailing her experience as a Yup’ik womxn and artist with Jedediah Wheeler, Executive Director of Arts and Cultural Programming at Montclair State University (MSU) and its Peak Performances series.

Culturebot encourages our community to read Johnson’s Open Letter, MSU’s response, and the Statement of Solidarity and petition.

Emily Johnson’s Open Letter:

https://emily-72967.medium.com/a-letter-i-hope-in-the-future-doesnt-need-to-be-written-52e1d6fd5350

MSU’s Response:

https://www.montclair.edu/newscenter/2021/02/04/montclair-state-university-statement-regarding-emily-johnson/

Statement of Solidarity and Petition:

https://www.change.org/p/call-to-action-solidarity-with-emily-johnson?utm_source=share_petition&utm_medium=custom_url&recruited_by_id=68cab800-6a17-11eb-9355-dff3d1d607f1&use_react=false

#NoMoreHarm

#NoMoreHarmMSU

#NoMoreHarmPeaks