06/07/2020
Up unto this point, Essence To Crux Theatre has not made an official public statement in regards to the recent inhumane murders of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, & Ahmaud Arbery which have resulted in a brilliant resurgence of the Black Lives Matter movement across the entire world this year. After several conversations and planning meetings, we are finally ready to bring our initial next steps to you:
Acknowledging that our country is built around a culture of white supremacy and that whether we have asked for it or not, each white individual has benefited from this privilege is the first step on a long road that Essence To Crux has committed to walking in the pursuit of genuine change. We have been reflecting and strategizing on how we can utilize our resources and platform to stand alongside our marginalized and repressed black community members in their fight for justice and reform.
Our first active step to join the cause is to offer our Etc. Lockdown Showcase Series as a platform for Atlanta's Black Artists to come together in artistic expression as well as converse about the topics/resources that matter most to them in this time. This episode will be released on Friday, June 19th (Juneteenth) and will be focused on solely representing Black artists, hosted by Irene Polk. If you would like to join the conversation and submit yourself as a performer for this episode, please fill out this Google Form:
https://forms.gle/kew5KBbpQRcr6UNi8
Our usually scheduled weekly episodes have been put on hold as we focus all of our attention on the importance of the upcoming Black Lives Matter focused Lockdown Episode. In addition to giving black voices a platform to discuss the topics most important to them, this episode will also offer the following actionable objectives:
--In motivation to ensure the voices of our BIPOC performers are widely heard as well as in the spirit of supporting a cause most important to Atlanta's Arts Community, Essence To Crux has committed to donating $1 per total combined views from YouTube & FB of our Juneteenth Episode within the 1st 24-Hours of its release (up to $500) to the cause of our audience's choice (as related to the Black Lives Matter movement).
--Throughout the time leading up to the release of our episode, we will be continuously sharing resources that we believe to be thought-provoking, productive, informative pieces in the wake of our journey for our own growth.
--We will be rewriting our company's mission in order to hold ourselves accountable for intersectionality and inclusion from our company's core.
Improvement is a process, and Essence To Crux is committed to doing our part.
![EPISODE #5 [BLACK LIVES MATTER] LIVE NOW!This week's Juneteenth episode hosted by Irene Polk features Akia Sembly, Unit...](https://img3.glartent.com/603/239/2409289996032392.jpg)
