Arts for Health Equity and Social Justice
About This Series
Art has always been a reflection of and response to the world around us. It’s also a way of envisioning what is possible and what is just.
We have seen art-making on the front lines of the current uprising, with people around the world using art to call out racism, end police brutality and fight social injustice.
As a lab focused on the intersection of the arts with health and wellbeing, we have been moved and stirred to action by the art created in response to long-standing injustices faced by Black communities. We cannot achieve our mission to amplify human potential unless we are part of the change to build an equitable and just world for all.
The series will examine the role of the arts in social change. We will hear from Black writers, artists, scholars, scientists and other experts in the BIPOC community and spotlight leaders who incorporate the arts as a tool for healing, resistance and justice.
Please join us as we Look & Listen—engaging with the art emerging in this historical moment—so that we can Learn and then take meaningful Action in the social justice movement.
Image: DC renames part of 16th Street Black Lives Matter Way. Credit: Toni Sandys / The Washington Post via Getty Images
#VibrateHigher
Catch performances from the Racial Justice Concert Series, a collaboration among Johns Hopkins students, faculty and staff launched in 2021. From hip-hop to classical, this free virtual concert series harnesses the power of music to support racial justice in Baltimore.
Look & Listen
Join us in honoring and engaging with the art emerging in this historical moment.
MURALS & PORTRAITS
Amy Sherald on Making Breonna Taylor’s Portrait (Vanity Fair)
How Artists are Responding to the Killing of George Floyd (Smithsonian Magazine)
‘My emotions were so raw’: The people creating art to remember George Floyd (CNN)
The Female Muralists Behind Black Lives Matter’s Most Visceral Imagery (Elle)
POSTERS
The New White House Fence Is Getting Covered In Protest Art (DCist)
SONGS
‘I just want to live’: Boy goes viral with moving song about George Floyd’s death (Today Show)
At The D.C. Protests, A ‘Lean On Me’ Singalong Offered A Moment Of Solace (NPR)
Terri Lyne Carrington + Social Science: Tiny Desk Concert (NPR)
DANCE
The Power of Dance as Political Protest (Dance Magazine)
In Richmond, Black Dance Claims Space Near Robert E. Lee (NYTimes)
Young Skater Improvises Performance to “Rise Up” by Andra Day (Facebook)
Dancing Bodies That Proclaim: Black Lives Matter (NYTimes)
SPOKEN WORD & POETRY
Artist Performs Piece on Inclusion at Base of Removed Confederate Statue (Instagram)
Homemade: An Online Poetry Reading (Facebook)
VISUAL ARTS
‘The World is on Fire:’ Artists Respond to the Protests (NYTimes)
‘I Want to Show Solidarity’: How Artists Have Reacted to George Floyd’s Killing (The Guardian)
See More >
Learn
What is the role of art in its many forms in advancing equity and social change?
We turn to our partners and field experts to share their insights.
"Reimagining Place: Identity, Healing and Justice" with Dr. Maria Rosario Jackson
In this episode of the ANA-JHU Social Justice Summer Series, Dr. Jackson shares her vision for integrating arts and culture into placemaking as a way to reckon with racial trauma and restore dignity to the oppressed.
All Stories Will Matter
Public health professional David Fakunle, PhD shares the power of storytelling in the pursuit of health equity.
The Role of Arts and Culture in Public Health
This 2019 paper names racism as a critical public health issue and discusses the importance of arts and culture in creating equitable, healthy communities.
How to Talk About Race
The National Museum of African American History & Culture provides tools and guidance on how to talk about race and why it matters.
"Creating and Implementing a More Inclusive Museum Vision" with Christopher Bedford of the Baltimore Museum of Art
In this episode of the ANA-JHU Social Justice Summer Series, director Christopher Bedford shares the importance of equity and diversity in every aspect of the BMA, from the artwork on display to the talent behind the scenes.
Act
Discover the organizations, programs and individuals taking action through art, plus ways you can deepen your civic engagement using the arts.
A Citywide Reading Program Connects Youth Through Literature and Safe Dialogue About Violence
As the writer Maya Angelou once said: “There is no greater agony than bearing an untold story inside you.” Previous research has found that reading and writing literature can help
The Silkroad Ensemble Weaves Together Music and People
Music has long been recognized for its ability to bring people together. But can its healing powers help to suture the divides wrought by pandemic distancing and growing social unrest?
Artists Send a Loud and Clear Message: Go Vote
As we inch closer to Election Day 2020 in the United States and the COVID-19 pandemic makes voting in person a risky endeavor, today’s visual artists are galvanizing people across
Building More Equitable Communities with Creative Placemaking
For better or worse, the spaces we inhabit shape the contours of our lives. But for many racial minorities, these spaces literally embody the systemic inequity and racism they face.
Wide Angle Youth Media: Fostering the Next Generation of Storytellers
It is difficult to separate the work of the students at Wide Angle Youth Media from the city they call home. Baltimore is, by many measures, an epicenter of racial
Marilyn Ness and “Charm City”: The Power of Film for Change
For the fifth year running, Baltimore is set to exceed 300 homicides in 2019. With the New York Times calling this violence a “tragedy”, it is easy to fall into
“This is precisely the time when artists go to work. There is no time for despair, no place for self-pity, no need for silence, no room for fear. We speak, we write, we do language. That is how civilizations heal.”
Toni Morrison, author