Artists as Witness:

Grants for Minnesota Artists and Culture Bearers who are bearing witness

Forecast awarding 20 grants of $1,000 each

To our Minnesota community: we support you, and we are with you in solidarity. Like so many Minnesotans, we are heartbroken, angry, and shaken by what our communities are living through. We also see the strength of community and the power of love and creativity among neighbors. We didn’t ask for this chaos, but we will fiercely stand up for one another today and every day. Alongside you, we mourn the killings of our neighbors, including Keith Porter in Chicago and poet Renee Nicole Good in Minneapolis. 

Artists and culture bearers, we see you in this moment. Through your voices, bodies, stories, and presence, you are on the front line of courage and care in our communities. You are helping people stay connected, grounded, and human. We see you showing up in the cold, documenting, feeding, comforting, creating spaces to gather and grieve. We see you showing us what democracy looks like in real time, standing up for freedom of expression, peaceful protest, and the right to disagree and dissent. You are standing up for truth and pushing back against racism, misinformation, and hate, reminding us that democracy depends on our ability to see one another in our shared humanity and resist division. 

We want to support the courageous artists who are bearing witness to what is happening to Minnesotans. Because of you, history will not forget this moment.