our commitment to anti-racism

The COVID-19 pandemic threw into sharp relief many inequities in the field of dance and in our country. On August 5th, 2020, The Yard’s staff and Board of Directors made a public commitment to playing an active role in dismantling racism and advancing diversity, equity, and inclusion.

Since then, we have provided anti-racism and cultural competence training for our team, overhauled our artist contracts to share risk more equitably, developed a curricular unit that teaches about social justice through hip-hop, invested in the work of BIPOC artists, and more.

We know these actions are a drop in the ocean, and we commit to going deeper and further in this work.

August 5, 2020

Between COVID-19 and the global movement for Black Lives Matter, 2020 has been a year unlike any other. The Yard’s campus may be closed, but we are engaged and active. As we reimagine our programs and operations in this context, we are committed to playing an active role in dismantling racism and advancing diversity, equity, and inclusion.

Moving forward, The Yard will:

- Invest in anti-racism and cultural competence training for our staff and Board of Directors.

- Reassess and, where necessary, change our employment practices to ensure they promote anti-racism, equity, and belonging across our staff.

- Evaluate and evolve our hiring practices for employees and contractors to increase opportunities for Black, Indigenous, and People of Color.

- Work to diversify our leadership; both our Board and our senior staff.

- Make changes to better foster collaboration and share risk equitably in our relationships with artists.

- Continue to commission, present, and engage Black, Indigenous, and People of Color artists and explore new modes of amplifying their voices.

- Continue to educate youth and adults in diverse dance genres, partnering with guest teaching artists to ensure they are taught with authenticity.

- Collaborate with organizations on Martha’s Vineyard to increase our outreach and create universal access to the arts in our community.

We are committed to taking action in the short-term while we work to implement and augment the above goals. In June, we formed a working group of Board and staff members to advance anti-racism work at The Yard and, more broadly, to promote diversity, equity, and inclusion across all aspects of our organization. This will be a sustained effort on the part of The Yard.