We acknowledge that the history of American theatre, like the history of the United States, is built on white supremacy. This has informed whose stories get told, who gets hired and who faces participation barriers at all levels. It has caused real harm to BIPOC artists and audience members. Profile Theatre is committed to anti-racism and we are taking steps towards lasting change.

In 2016, Profile Theatre launched an initiative that identified Equity, Diversity, Inclusion and Access (EDIA) as top priorities. As a result, Profile has worked to make a safe space for individuals with different racial and ethnic backgrounds, genders, and sexual orientations. We’ve prioritized centering stories of women and people of color in our mainstage productions and engagement programs. These remain top institutional priorities.

Today, Profile leadership understands the specific need to combat anti-Blackness in our organization and industry and to fight for racial justice. We commit to identifying and dismantling systemic racism in our work, practices and spaces in addition to the ongoing pursuit of our EDIA goals.

Building on the goals identified by noted anti-racism theater maker and educator Nicole Brewer, our anti-racism work includes three overarching aims: harm prevention, relationship building and continuous learning.

Over the last 6 weeks, our staff and board have come up with commitments and action items. We have also budgeted to engage in this work.

Profile staff and board commit to:
-Prioritizing anti-racism at every layer of our organization
-Engaging in ongoing education and training for our staff, board and volunteers
-Developing and maintaining a practice of community listening and feedback

2020-2021 ACTION ITEMS

August-September 2020
Determine Long-Term Goals by moving through the Racial Equity Self-Assessment Tool published by the Coalition of Communities of Color. This will include a review of our current programming, partnerships and practices and an evaluation of where we can improve.

August-June 2021
Ongoing Training for staff, board, artists and volunteers in anti-racism practices.

By December 2020
Develop a Racial Equity Lens for decision making and benchmarks to help us measure progress and make course corrections.

Quarterly starting September 2020
Engage Community Members in quarterly meetings and ask for their feedback on our programs. Pay them for their participation.

November/December 2020 and April/May 2021
Reassess our goals and progress, identify new priorities for self-improvement and refresh our action items semi-annually as our work progresses.

This is just the beginning. We invite you to be a part of this journey and in the coming months we’ll share specific ways you can get involved. For now, get in touch with Director of Patron and Donor Relations, Krina Turner at krina@profiletheatre.org or 503-954-1195