Part of the point of art is the lens it offers us to look at the world in a different way, to converse with people and perspectives that are not our own, to learn, to disagree and to share, writes Clare Reddington.
Our mission at Watershed is to bring artists and audiences together, producing and supporting accessible experiences which fire up our imaginations and build hope.
So when the far right took to the streets a few weeks ago in a terrifying display of racism and Islamophobia, I thought it was important the culture sector didn’t sleep through it.
Like many others, I felt helpless, restless and wanted something TO DO. That action has taken two slightly antithetical forms – we have resourced people who needed to rest and organised quite a long walk.
Prioritising the Global Majority
The day after the riots, our action was to check in on staff. People were shaken and vulnerable, but those from the Global Majority were our priority, given the nature of the events.
We offered a paid rest day for staff from minoritised backgrounds, arranged taxis for anyone who needed them and went back over our operational procedures for civil unrest.
We organised bursaries for creatives from the Pervasive Media Studio community so they could rest too - and offered up our spaces for organising, decompression and restoration.
And then I put a call out to the sector: who wanted to join me to raise money for organisations tackling racism? I was bowled over by the response.
From Bath to Bristol on foot
On Bank Holiday Monday, 25 people, 2 dogs and a baby walked the 27k from Bath to Bristol to raise money for SARI and Hope Not Hate in an act of togetherness by the culture sector which so far has raised just over £5,500 for the two important organisations.
SARI (Stand up to Racism and Inclusion) provides free and confidential support for anyone that is a victim of hate crime across Avon and Somerset and it works with teachers and employers to raise awareness and bring people together.
Hope Not Hate focuses on the organised far right, the communities who are susceptible to them and the issues and policies which give rise to them.
It turns out Bath to Bristol is a long way – it took 6 hours 45 minutes walking, and my feet were still sore three days later. But it was joyful.
Walkers came from London, Birmingham, Bath and Bristol, and people met us on the way to support with water, ice creams and vibes. We did not all know each other, but we made new friends, identified opportunities for collaboration and took a delightful river swim over lunch.
Continues...
A proactive approach to social justice
Like posting black squares, there is a danger this act could be seen as performative if not accompanied by action. For Watershed, our actions are part of a proactive approach to racial justice across many teams. It includes undertaking white supremacy training with Martha Awojobe and bringing Restorative Justice and resolution frameworks into our People policies.
Our decision to resource rest was inspired by the work of Rising and first trialled with participants in our Alternative Technologies for Just Transition project.
We've found that when an artist or culture worker with lived experience of inequality is asked to participate in a socially engaged project - either as a participant or staff - it’s important to consider how they may already be managing emotions related to their personal experience of inequality, as well as the possible impact of representing their lived experience to a group and the potential for a lack of understanding from other participants.
Reaching across communities
So, we have also now formulated a rest policy which acknowledges this extra burden and allows up to three days of paid rest per year for anyone who self identifies as being excluded.
This won’t please everyone of course. There are still some leaders making the case that arts organisations should be left to be ‘excellent’. Watershed’s values-led approach has also alienated a small number of audience members – one person shouted down the telephone that we shouldn’t assume our audiences were against the far right.
But this was a good reminder that our audiences ARE NOT all the same, and there is a clear need for cultural organisations to engage in projects and programming which reach across communities. That we need to continue to address the structural inequalities felt by our teams and to advocate and champion for the social cohesion and civic infrastructure role we provide.
The chanting may have died down, but the urgency of the challenge remains - now is the time to fight unrest with rest – to take action and spread hope.
Clare Reddington is CEO at Watershed.
watershed.co.uk/
@wshed
Watershed’s rest policy is shared here to enable others to adopt or build upon our approach. You can still donate to the Walking Together Fundraiser here.
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