Now’s the time: Supporting leaders of colour in the arts. By Lisa Richards Toney, President and CEO, Association of Performing Arts Professionals (APAP)
The ecosystem of the performing arts field is fragile. It must be balanced, so that the system can remain healthy. Central to its survival are the leaders who guide the organisations that provide the vital services that sustain the arts. In this underfunded field, everyone faces challenges, but BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, People of Colour) leaders encounter additional obstacles due to systemic racism.
In recent years, the American funding community has tried to address this by designating substantial support to bolster BIPOC leaders of BIPOC-focused arts organisations. Fortifying these organisations through financial investment, especially during a pandemic, served as a lifeline and aimed to inspire increased philanthropy, fostering hope that this support for BIPOC leaders might multiply and spread.
As a Black leader of a predominately white institution (PWI) in the performing arts, I knew that the initial influx of support wasn’t meant for me. While it’s assumed that our organisation is well-resourced and that I have greater access than my colleagues leading BIPOC organisations, the reality is more complex. The work of BIPOC leaders in PWIs is fraught with unique challenges and opportunities that deserve financial support. Moreover, to realise a truly equitable and balanced ecosystem, all of us—BIPOC leaders of all kinds and stakeholders in PWIs—must work together.
Throughout the non-profit sector, headlines highlight that BIPOC leaders in PWIs are not receiving the support they need. They’re offered a “hollow prize” or “hung out to dry”. (Google either phrase along with “BIPOC leaders” to find related articles.) According to Chanda Causer in the Stanford Social Innovation Review, “63 percent of POC leaders cite a lack of access to individual donors as a fundraising challenge, compared to 49 percent of white leaders who say this is a challenge. Similarly, 51 percent of POC leaders cite lack of access to foundations as a challenge compared to 41 percent of white leaders.”
Access to transformational philanthropy for BIPOC leaders in all organisations is critical if America is to truly become an anti-racist and equitable society. We must work within PWIs and BIPOC-focused organisations simultaneously. As a Black leader of a PWI, my charge is different yet complementary to those in culturally specific organisations. We must care for the entire ecosystem. Without leaders like me, the work is incomplete.
Furthermore, we BIPOC leaders are expected “to jump through hoops – to perform, protect, nurture and fix – things that were never expected of white leadership” at the expense of our wellbeing. Our vision has been limited by dire circumstances, and the perception of us as “super-strong and resilient” leads to burnout, and for a fraction of the price. (Research from the National Women’s Law Center found that women of colour earn less than 70 cents for every dollar earned by a white, non-Hispanic males.)
To compound matters, some PWIs want (or so they think) BIPOC leaders to dismantle structural racism. We’re engaged in long-term, strategically risky work (such as APAP’s “10/20/30 Pledge”) and seeding change in institutions that need more than just a face lift but a values-based makeover.
The irony is that many fear that BIPOC leaders will focus too much on race and equity at the expense of the organisational mission and bottom line, as if they are mutually exclusive. Yet, when managing core functions, our experience and expertise are questioned.
BIPOC leaders are arts leaders. Without this leadership, the opportunity to help our ecosystem flourish will be lost, yet our sector’s practices are wreaking havoc on our nervous systems and eroding organisations by wiping out the very leaders we need most.
For some BIPOC leaders, enduring racist experiences, systemic wealth disparities and the exclusionary culture of many philanthropic circles is unsustainable, mentally and emotionally. As a result, many BIPOC leaders are vacating their positions. BIPOC leaders can’t afford to stay, and our industry can’t afford to lose them.
I am a Black woman, and pieces of this article reflect my own 30-year-long career. I have coped through compartmentalisation and stayed the course despite difficulties. I have also benefited from the support of other BIPOC leaders and allies.
Let me be clear. The organisation I lead, the Association of Performing Arts Professionals (APAP), is a space where I can voice this issue. APAP’s commitment to READI (Race, Equity, Accessibility, Diversity, and Inclusion) makes it possible to have a constructive dialogue with a wide and diverse swath of the field, enabling me to write the words you are reading right now.
As the head of this global network of performing arts professionals, it’s my charge to engage in thought leadership. From wherever you sit in the world, I invite you to do the same. Whether you are a BIPOC leader or ally, we need you.
To read more about APAP’s “10/20/30 Pledge”, visit apap365.org/programs/10-20-30-redi-pledge/
Photo: Donald Harrison at Town Hall during APAP|NYC 2024 (Adam Kissick/APAP)
APAP
The Association of Performing Arts Professionals (APAP) is the national service, advocacy and membership organisation for performing arts presenting, booking and touring field. The convener of APAP|NYC (10-14 January, 2025), the world’s leading gathering of performing arts professionals, and a provider of year-round programmes and services, APAP is dedicated to developing and supporting a robust performing arts industry and the professionals who work within it.
Learn more at apap365.org
