21c was founded on the belief that contemporary art can be an agent for positive change. Contemporary art surrounds our team and our guests, creating a haven for artistic expression and a forum for conversations around today’s most pressing and troubling issues.
Diversity, equality, and inclusion have always been at the heart of our brand and mission, but during this time we discovered that we have work to do. Over the past month we have started to review process and culture across 21c, to identify gaps in our own Diversity & Inclusion efforts, and to determine the ways in which to address them. Going forward, we must ensure that the experience of our team is as inclusive and equitable as the art on our walls and the programming in our museum, and that everyone on our team has the same opportunities and access to resources that will help them grow their career.
There is no perfect action or set of actions, but we will not let that paralyze us. By 2023, we have established the goal of having 30% BIPOC (Black, Indigenous and People of Color) leadership across the company. We have introduced the following initiatives in support of that goal, and to ensure that 21c is a safe, welcoming, and inclusive place for ALL:
- 21c Racial Equity Task Force: Open to ALL teammates, across all properties, representing diverse voices with the goal of increasing BIPOC leadership at the company and setting goals around Diversity & Inclusion at 21c. The task force will focus on three areas:
- Recruitment and Hiring
- Programming and Education
- Goal Setting, Implementation and Reporting
- Training & Education: New training and resource groups will complement our current anti-discrimination and harassment training, with a focus on unconscious bias, addressing bias in recruitment and workplace decisions, anti-racism, and the role of individuals as allies.
- Listening & Reporting: To ensure our workplaces are trusting places for complex and sometimes difficult conversations, we are connecting teammates with a variety of tools through which they can share feedback on their experiences at 21c and report behavior not in keeping with 21c’s culture including:
- A direct line to the corporate leadership team to report concerns or ask questions
- A toll-free number that allows teammates to report concerns anonymously
- Unbiased Perspectives: One of the strongest things we can do as leaders is ask for help. Expert partners are helping to inform and advise our efforts, providing an honest, unbiased view on how we are doing, where we are making progress, and where improvement is still needed.
Additionally, in support of calls for racial equality and social justice in our communities and across the country, we devoted our brand social media channels solely to amplifying the voice of Black and Brown communities in the month of June. We highlighted works from the 21c collection that address the realities of BIPOC communities with commentary from the artists themselves and shared ways for our followers to act, from donating to bail funds to promoting opportunities for outreach and advocacy.
We are grateful to everyone on our team who has shared their experiences or asked questions that challenged us to listen, learn, and improve. We look forward to the work ahead and are dedicated to ensuring that 21c Museum Hotels is a safe, welcoming, and inclusive place to work and visit.
