As a young nonprofit, we are still defining how Evanston Made will be a social and racial justice advocate in our community, but we want to make it clear: We stand against racism. We stand with our nonprofit partners and grassroots community activators who work directly in causes that are at the epicenter of the fight against racial injustice, and we are committed to working within our sphere of influence toward equity-centered solutions.  Together, we can alter the actions and attitudes that have allowed injustice to continue, and work to create the systemic and cultural change we need to move into a safer, healthier, more equitable world. 

We believe that artists are social-change communicators.They have the tools to promote conversations about race and racism in ways that help people understand, act, and support solutions that advance equity. Artists help us to imagine a world that is more just and inclusive while learning from our past — and present — mistakes and failures. Evanston Made is committed to elevating the voices in our community that speak out against racism and to promoting the work that advances social and racial justice. 

Commitment 

We believe that Evanston Made should meet and exceed The 15 Percent Pledge to have 15% of our members be Black, Brown, Indigenous People of Color. Currently we have 310 members, 5% are BIPOC. We have work to do. 

As we aim to address racial equity in all aspects of our organization we also pledge not to burden our current BIPOC members to do the heavy lifting of outreach and recruitment. Our board will actively connect with individuals and partner with community organizations to raise equity awareness and grow our BIPOC artist membership.

In addition, we will not employ “bandaid” solutions to equity and inclusion, but instead will look into how we can break down social and economic barriers and not perpetuate systemic racism in our organization.