The mission of the Cultural Inclusion Initiative is to foster diversity, equity, and inclusive practices throughout Manhattan School of Music
MSM’s Cultural Inclusion Initiative (CII) was launched in August 2019 as part of MSM’s Strategic Plan 2019-2024. The mission of the CII is to foster diversity, equity, and inclusive practices throughout the School by auditing current practices, identifying areas where additional attention is needed to achieve change, and creating regular discussion forums for students, faculty, and staff.
We want to acknowledge that we gather as Manhattan School of Music on the traditional land of the Lenape and Wappinger past and present, and honor with gratitude the land itself and the people who have stewarded it throughout the generations. This calls us to commit to continuing to learn how to be better stewards of the land we inhabit as well.
The 2020–21 Class of Artist Scholars will communicate their experiences and insights relating to racial equity, representation, and inclusion, sparking ongoing dialogue with the MSM Community in multiple forums.
“If you are free, you need to free somebody else. If you have some power, then your job is to empower somebody else.” Toni Morrison
“If you are free, you need to free somebody else. If you have some power, then your job is to empower somebody else.”
Toni Morrison
For the 2020–21 academic year, every concert on the Manhattan School of Music performance calendar includes work by African American creators and/or those from the African diaspora. Creators include:
Please submit your ideas and proposals for future concerts through this form:
The Black Creators Initiative Submission Form
“It is not our differences that divide us. It is our inability to recognize, accept, and celebrate those differences.” Audre Lorde
“It is not our differences that divide us. It is our inability to recognize, accept, and celebrate those differences.”
Audre Lorde
Anti-racism work requires sustained, proactive education and engagement as well as systemic, intentional efforts at the micro- and macro-levels. Anti-racism work also requires individuals to take responsibility for their own learning and avoid placing the responsibility for that education on already marginalized and disenfranchised groups, including Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC).
Below are recommended resources for anti-racist work. They present historical and social contexts while also highlighting the realities of systemic and institutional racism.
Barbarian Virtues: The United States Encounters Foreign Peoples at Home and Abroad, 1897–1917 by Matthew Frye Jacobson
Creating Black Americans: African-American History and Its Meanings, 1619 to the Present by Nell Irvin Painter
Whiteness of a Different Color: European Immigrants and the Alchemy of Race by Matthew Frye Jacobson
Covering: The Hidden Assault on Our Civil Rights by Kenji Yoshino
The History of White People by Nell Irvin Painter
White Fragility: Why It’s So Difficult for White People to Talk About Racism by Robin DiAngelo
Between The World and Me by Ta-Nehisi Coates
How to Be an Anti-Racist by Ibram X. Kendi
Becoming by Michelle Obama
Why Are All the Black Kids Sitting Together in the Cafeteria?: And Other Conversations About Race by Beverly Daniel Tatum, PhD
Stamped from the Beginning: The Definitive History of Racist Ideas in America by Ibram X. Kendi
Me and White Supremacy: Combat Racism, Change the World, and Become a Good Ancestor by Layla F. Saad
A People’s History of the United States by Howard Zinn
So You Want to Talk About Race by Ijeoma Oluo
The Color of Law: A Forgotten History of How Our Government Segregated America
Eloquent Rage: A Black Feminist Discovers Her Superpower by Brittany Cooper
Evicted: Poverty and Profit in the American City by Matthew Desmond
I’m Still Here: Black Dignity in a World Made for Whiteness by Austin Channing Brown
This Book is Anti-Racist: 20 Lessons on How to Wake Up, Take Action, and Do The Work by Tiffany Jewell
America’s Racial Contract is Killing Us” by Adam Serwer |The Atlantic
Ella Baker and the Black Freedom Movement (Mentoring a New Generation of Activists)
“My Life as an Undocumented Immigrant” by Jose Antonio Vargas | The New York Times Magazine
The 1619 Project | The New York Times Magazine
The Combahee River Collective Statement
“The Intersectionality Wars” by Jane Coaston | Vox
Tips for Creating Effective White Caucus Groups, developed by Craig Elliott, PhD
“Where do I donate? Why is the uprising violent? Should I go protest?” by Courtney Martin
“White Privilege: Unpacking the Invisible Knapsack” by Peggy McIntosh
“Who Gets to Be Afraid in America?” by Dr. Ibram X. Kendi | The Atlantic
“Why Are The Protestors Being Framed As The Problem? White Supremacy.” By Britni De La Cretaz
“The Case for Reparations” by Ta-Nehisi Coates | The Atlantic
“What is Owed” by Nikole Hannah-Jones | The New York Times Magazine
1619 (The New York Times)
About Race
Code Switch (NPR)
Intersectionality Matters! ( Kimberlé Crenshaw)
Momentum: A Race Forward Podcast
Pod For The Cause (from The Leadership Conference on Civil & Human Rights)
Pod Save the People (Crooked Media)
Seeing White
A Juneteenth Conversation: Reckoning with Our Histories to Reimagine Our Futures, Together (An NYU BeTogether Event) (June 18, 2020)
Racial Equity Tools (RacialEquityTools.Org)
Coping with & Contextualizing Anti-Asian Racism & Pandemics (An NYU BeTogether Event) (May 4, 2020)
Black Lives Matter
Othering and Belonging Institute
Race Forward
APR 5 | MON | 5:00PM – 6:00PM Black in the Theater Part 2: Expanding the Industry (Online)
OCT 29 | THURS | 3:00PM Just Another Dumb Asian Singer: A conversation with alums Nicholas Phan, Tenor, Myra Huang, piano, and Fleur Barron, Mezzo-Soprano on their experience as Asian performers in the opera world. In advance of the conversation, please read Nicholas Phan’s article.
OCT 27 | TUES | 2:00PM Black in the Theater Part 1: “Entering the Industry” Guest alumni Jasmine Muhammad, Soprano (MM ’12), and Tesia Kwarteng, Mezzo-Soprano (MM ’13) are here to discuss life as Black women on the opera, concert, and musical theatre stages. This will be a lively discussion, so please bring your questions!
Terminology can be a critical component in creating meaningful discussions. While terminology may change over time, below are terms and explanations that we feel are important to understand.
Anti-racism is characterized as “the work of actively opposing racism by advocating for changes in political, economic, and social life. Anti-racism tends to be an individualized approach and set up in opposition to individual racist behaviors and impacts.” (National Education Association – Racial Justice in Education). At MSM, we hope that our initiatives and mission help to support this work for our entire Community.
“Black, Indigenous, and People of Color. The term BIPOC is used to highlight the unique relationship to whiteness that Indigenous and Black (African Americans) people have, which shapes the experiences of and relationship to white supremacy for all people of color within a U.S. context.” (BIPOC Project)
You will see the term BIPOC throughout our website and resources as a means of identifying not only Black people, but Black, Indigenous, and People of Color.
White supremacy is “the belief system that rationalizes and reproduces white advantage in the political, social, and cultural institutions of society. This belief system holds that white people, white culture, and things associated with whiteness are superior to those of other racial groups.” (Teaching for Diversity and Social Justice, page 138). You will see this expression throughout anti-racist resources.
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