The following statement is intended to address racial equity concerns held by the community regarding the recent announcement of the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) Cultural Grants. After reading, we ask that if you and/or an organization that you represent choose to sign on in solidarity, please complete the below form with your information:
Community Concern Regarding ARPA Funding
9/9/2024
"On August 20th, 2024, the City of Worcester announced the grantees for the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) Cultural Grants. The city allocated 2.95 million dollars to alleviate the negative impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic experienced by organizations whose work is rooted in elevating arts and culture for the community.
While the organizations that are led by and serve Black, Indigenous, People of Color (BIPOC) and low-income community members in the city appreciate receiving funding, we are additionally disappointed to see blatant racial equity issues in the disbursement of the awards. Despite attempts by some city staff to do targeted outreach and extend deadlines to try and have more BIPOC organizations apply, the spread of the list is disturbingly “business as usual” for the City of Worcester - large organizations that do not employ or primarily serve BIPOC or low-income residents of our community at the top, and organizations that do on the bottom.
ARPA funding was intended for “those hardest hit by the pandemic, especially low-income families and communities of color.” With the exception of a few, the majority of the top 20 organizations that received the largest grants do not primarily serve or employ those who ARPA funding is meant for. We understand that there are guidelines for compliance that require the city to make decisions that were set out by the federal government, however, we are disappointed in this outcome.
The issue of equity in funding is a local, national, and worldwide issue - and Worcester is no different. The ARPA funding is an incredibly unique opportunity to boost organizations that serve those who are most vulnerable in our community and are not yet regularly receiving large donations, are not connected to donors and do not primarily fund their work through ticket sales. While all money is deeply appreciated, the impact of this funding for the organizations towards the bottom half of the list would be immeasurable.
We do not expect the city to, and know the city will not, revoke funding from any top awardees to balance this clear issue of equity in funding. However, it must be acknowledged that this is not the first time smaller BIPOC-led organizations have experienced major challenges in accessing funding through the city. The frustration with the barriers regarding the ARPA application process, policies, and reporting have been brought to the city’s attention from the start, and we are deeply disappointed to see that those concerns seem continue to go ignored by those in positions of institutional power. We are additionally aware of numerous organizations that experienced challenges accessing funding that they have been awarded due to excessive, rigid city policies that do not lean towards equity. Some have ultimately decided to give the funding back as it is not worth the hassle and the trust between the city and community organizations is still not there.
During the August 27th, 2024 City Council Meeting, City Manager Eric Batista disclosed that $44,348,367 of overall ARPA funds remain uncommitted. This funding must be allocated and committed to community projects and organizations by December 31st, 2024. In the wake of the list of ARPA Cultural Grant Awardees and the experiences of other BIPOC organizations, we are urging the city to create easily accessible routes to the remaining ARPA funds for the folks this funding was designed for - low-income community members, communities of color, and folks living and working in neighborhoods that were most impacted by the pandemic.
We ultimately write this letter for two reasons -
1) To ensure that the perspective of marginalized community members is documented: The tone of most articles and reports regarding the ARPA Cultural Grants has mainly been celebratory, which only captures the perspective of those whose stories are traditionally prioritized over others, and not the instant shock and frustration from those who hold marginalized identities who are no strangers to this trend from the city.
2) To urge folks to keep an eye on and demand that the city use the remaining ARPA funds for the communities that it was originally intended for - BIPOC, low-income and folks in neighborhoods that unequivocally experienced harm as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic."
