Imagine Just, a program of Enrich Chicago, has announced the first recipients of its Community-Advised Fund, a new grant and system of funding aimed at removing barriers to entry for artists, organizations and collectives often overlooked and unrecognized by traditional philanthropy. Enrich Chicago is a collaborative of over 50 Chicagoland arts and philanthropic organizations committed to ending racism and systemic oppression in the arts sector. Enrich Chicago is reinvesting this financial resource in African, Latino(a), Asian, Arab, and Native American (ALAANA)/Black, Indigenous, and people of color (BIPOC) arts organizations over the next two years. Seven organizations/collectives received $5,000 grants and, as part of the Community-Advised Fund, will join the Just Praxis Circle, a collectively-led peer space for community care, accountability and healing for BIPOC culture workers and artists. The Just Praxis Circle will meet monthly for one year and culminate in a community celebration of learning.
Imagine Just Community Advised Fund Grant Recipients Include:
Gage Park Latinx Council
Gage Park Latinx Council is a queer, DACA and Latinx-led grassroots organization based on Chicago’s Southwest Side that is committed to creating a strong sense of community and identity through art, radical education, and direct actions grounded in social justice and mutual aid. GPLXC was founded in 2018.
The Honeycomb Network
The Honeycomb centers BIPOC equity, leadership, creatives, and cross-community and cultural building in a reciprocal, generative and authentic way. Founded in 2020, the organization is a multi-functional community space offering holistic co-working, co-creating + collective care. They primarily serve Humboldt Park and the West Side.
UrbanTheater Company
As a platform for multicultural representation in the arena of performance and story-telling, UTC aims to preserve the Puerto Rican and Humboldt Park community voice and celebrate cultural experiences through interdisciplinary art forms. The theater was founded in 2005 by and for people of color.
Photo Credit: Enrich Chicago
