Lab Notes
"NOT EVERYTHING THAT IS FACED CAN BE CHANGED; BUT NOTHING CAN BE CHANGED UNTIL IT IS FACED."

~ JAMES BALDWIN
Lab Notes is the monthly e-newsletter from Progressive Arts Alliance.
Commitment to Racial Equity
Staff and board members at Progressive Arts Alliance have been thinking, talking, and learning about racial equity during the past year. We stand in solidarity with the fight against systematic racism and we are committed to being agents of change.

A committee of staff and board members are focusing on what we can do within our organization to improve our equity practices. We are currently completing an organizational self-assessment related to racial equity that will help us create a more detailed plan for our work moving forward.

Spearheaded by Greater Cleveland Partnership, PAA joined more than 100 organizations to support Cleveland's declaration that racism is a public health crisis. Each of the organizations has also pledged to do the work needed to address this problem in our city. Read the full statement.
MetroHealth Mural Lifts Spirits

Progressive Arts Alliance teamed up with MetroHealth’s Arts in Health Department to provide a summer program for 22 children in Slavic Village. PAA artist-educator Lynda Abraham led small groups of children through the creative process at The Community of Faith Assembly. Their work – a beautiful, colorful mural – can now be seen at the MetroHealth Broadway Health Center .
 
Children aged 3 to 16 learned about color wheels, color palettes, and symmetry while they designed butterflies. Some of the students’ silhouettes were incorporated into the installation.
 
MetroHealth staff members shared photos of the mural with colleagues, who responded:

  • Ohhh . . . This is glorious. Crying happy tears in my office. This makes my day.
  • This looks awesome! What an inspiring art installation. I love that it’s reflective and inclusive of the children in the neighborhood.

PAA is delighted to share this project with the community and looks forward to partnering with MetroHealth and others in the Slavic Village neighborhood again soon.

Special thanks to the Third Federal Foundation for project support.
Phone: 216-772-4722