By Connie Martinez, SVCREATES’ Chief Executive Officer
In the words of my good friend, cultural leader, and founder of San Jose Taiko, Roy Hirabayashi, “Diversity without equity is an empty performance.” These words of wisdom are what drove Tamara Alvarado and Raul Lozano to join Roy in creating the Multicultural Arts Leadership Institute (MALI); a place for cultural leaders of color to learn from each other, develop ways of engaging our civic leaders and the greater community in the arts, and find the courage to persevere in a Valley often disconnected from a sense of place and the richness of our cultural offerings.
SVCREATES feels deeply connected to MALI’s mission because we believe in the power of the arts to heal our community, foster cross-cultural understanding, and connect people to place and to each other. In 2006 SVCREATES, then 1stACT, partnered with the three founders and incubated the MALI program until 2011 when it was “spun off” on its own under the leadership of Tamara Alvarado at the School of Arts and Culture at the Mexican Heritage Plaza. Today MALI is thriving.
MALI is a year-long training program that brings together a cohort of up to 12 arts professionals of color who live or work in the Silicon Valley arts, cultural, and entertainment eco-systems. Since 2008, 119 artists have completed the program of which 24 are in director-level positions, 22 are Small Business Owners, 8 are Artist Laureates, and 5 work in government.
Given our country’s history and dominant white culture, equity is an aspirational goal for our community to set and a choice for our community to make. Thank you to MALI Director Demone Carter and the founders of MALI for leading us on this journey.
Join us to learn more about MALI and their future plans at Hidden Wisdom: Uplifting the Narratives of Silicon Valley’s Multicultural Arts Leaders on Tuesday, November 19 at the School of Arts and Culture at the Mexican Heritage Plaza.
