Art & Racial Justice

Art & Racial Justice

As an arts organization, we know that imagination and creativity are powerful tools. Both play a role in the movement for racial justice, equity, and change. The following actions and organizations—some local, some book arts-focused—imagine a more racially just and equitable world, and we encourage everyone to take part in making these goals a reality.

If you have suggestions to add to this list, please fill out this Google form

Download Justice for George prints (as shown above):

PDF 1 and PDF 2.

Designed and hand-printed by MCBA Studio Technician Molly Poganski.


National Book Arts-Focused Organizations

  • Founded in 2019 by book artist and printmaker Tia Blassingame, the Book/Print Artist/Scholar of Color Collective brings scholars of Book History and Print Culture into conversation and collaboration with Black, Indigenous and People of Color (BIPOC) book artists, papermakers, curators, letterpress printers, printmakers to build community, support systems. Their shared passion for book arts and the unique potential of artists’ books as vehicles for social change and racial unity grounds them. 
  • Founded in October 2018 by Tanekeya Word, Black Women of Print is an African Diaspora-centered platform, a digital homeplace for independent, mid-career, and established Black women printmakers. The organization serves as a place to support and promote the visibility of Black women printmakers and as a professional member directory of Black women printmakers who practice within the field.
  • Printmakers Against Racism periodically hosts a global virtual art sale to support the fight for racial justice.

Take Action

Local BIPOC-Led Arts Organizations

  • All My Relations Arts honors and strengthens relationships between contemporary American Indian artists and the living influence of preceding generations, between artists and audiences of all ethnic backgrounds, and between art and the vitality of the American Indian Cultural Corridor.
  • A community-driven arts cooperative complete with a bookstore, shared workspace, and a performance space, Black Table Arts is located in Minneapolis. Black Table Arts gathers black communities through the arts toward better black futures.
  • Believing in the inherent worth of all Black people, Black Visions Collective co-creates spaces that conjure possibilities of change and growth, deepen our practices of resilience, and move toward greater integrity.
  • Black Women Speak centers Black women’s lives by cultivating a community with Black women, giving voice to their experiences as a way to heal, find joy and move towards liberation on their own terms
  • Catalyst Arts is a small arts incubator interested in the intersection of art, activism and artists who define themselves as change-makers. They place a particular emphasis on increasing the visibility of and providing a platform for artists whose voices have historically been underrepresented in the arts, including (but not limited to): artists of color, LGBTQIA+ artists, immigrants, Indigenous, low-income, and artists exploring non-traditional pathways to success.
  • In Black Ink (IBI) seeks to create spaces where the intergenerational stories about Minnesotans of African heritage can be shared, documented, and archived. In Black Ink provides publishing arts initiatives and opportunities to communities that have been disenfranchised historically, and continue to be presently.
  • Indigenous Roots is dedicated to building, supporting, and cultivating opportunities for Native, Black, Brown and Indigenous peoples through cultural arts and activism.
  • Juxtaposition Arts is a teen-staffed art and design center, gallery, retail shop and artists’ studio space in north Minneapolis. Juxtaposition Arts develops community by engaging and employing young urban artists in hands-on education initiatives that create pathways to self-sufficiency while actualizing creative power.
  • Million Artist Movement (MAM) is a global vision and movement that believes in the role of art in the campaign to dismantle oppressive racist systems against Black, Brown, Indigenous and disenfranchised peoples.
  • Mizna is a critical platform for contemporary Arab film, literature, and art, based in St. Paul.
  • Migizi acts as a circle of support that nurtures the development of Native American youth in order to unleash their creativity and dreams—to benefit themselves, their families, and community. MIGIZI puts youth first, supporting youth-driven activities that fully engage youth in a self-directed path to holistic wellness and to success in education and employment.
  • Obsidian Arts annually produces four to six visual arts exhibitions, three to four community art history workshops, and supports an artists’ development network for emerging artists of color, mostly black. Its focus is the use of art to invite the broader community to dialogue about issues that have been overlooked or shunned in the conversation-line of mainstream Black communities.
  • Since 2007, RARE Productions has been creating visibility and opportunities for artists of color. Through engaging artists of color, and centering Queer and Trans artists of color,  RARE Productions seeks to unite communities and families in healing relationships and bridge cultural gaps via the vast mediums of art.
  • ROHO Collective is a network for artists of color in the Twin Cities. They serve as a consolidated voice and platform for both emerging and professional artists of color by providing a place for artist and business development, professional growth, and programming. They take responsibility for ensuring our communities are educated about the value of the arts in our society, and they advocate for the arts both locally and nationally.
  • St. Paul Almanac is a literary-centered arts organization that shares stories across cultures and cultivates dialogue to promote understanding, relationships, and collaborative action. Beyond their annual book, they also host public readings and a unique community editor mentorship program. Their leadership, employees, participants, and contractors (editors, artists, filmmakers, etc.) reflect a multiplicity of ethnicities.
  • Soomaal House of Art (Soomaal) is a Minnesota-based Somali art collective that provides studio space, studio critiques, artistic community, mentorships for younger Somali artists, and an annual exhibition space with educational programming.