The M Blog
The M Blog is an online space for us and for you — artists, museum staff and curators, guest writers, and community contributors — to discuss issues and ideas related to the many experiences of being American today.
We stand in solidarity with Black Lives Matter and our BIPOC communities now and into the future.
Black Lives Matter.
Demands for justice in the face of George Floyd’s murder are reverberating from the Twin Cities across the world. Museums are not neutral and must actively participate in the dismantling of deeply rooted, systemic racism and racial violence in America. The M stands in solidarity with the Black community and allies showing up in the streets of Minneapolis and St. Paul—to protest, clean up, and support the tired, angry, and grieving. The many visionary Black and BIPOC artists in the mix are testifying to the power of art to confront white supremacy, to speak truth to power, to honor and resist forgetting, and to heal. We’re listening and reflecting on how the M can center and help sustain this anti-racist work.
The M’s Equity and Inclusion Statement
Adopted September 25, 2019
Minnesota Museum of American Art (the M) seeks to explore expansively American identities through art, recognizing that the lived experiences and creativity of many artists, cultures, and communities have been historically, and presently are, underrepresented by museums. In order to do this, we will directly address issues of inclusion, diversity, equity, accessibility, and race in how we hire, develop exhibitions and programs, enter into relationships, create opportunities, eliminate barriers to participation, and authentically live our mission and values.
We are committed to advancing the richness of differences and the equitable inclusion of them. We recognize that this work is constant, ongoing, and will evolve over time.
Authors: Minnesota Museum of American Art’s Inclusion, Diversity, Equity, and Accessibility (IDEA) Committee, with contributions from the inaugural IDEA Committee and its Co-Chairs, Robin Hickman-Winfield and KaYing Yang. The IDEA Committee was established in July 2017.
IDEA Committee:
• Community members: Gordon Coons, Robin Hickman-Winfield (former Co-Chair and M Trustee), Tommy Sar
• M staff: Ken Kornack, Kristin Makholm, Wallace Rice, Rosa Rybeck-Smith
• M trustees: Brenda Child, Bruce Corrie, Nathan Johnson, Michael Sammler-Jones
