NorthStar’s federal grant was abruptly ended despite months of planning and commitments made to artists, collaborators, and community members. As a small team with limited resources, this cut of $65,000+ in capacity-building funding directly affects staff salaries and our ability to sustain the work. Not just the meaningful events you see and attend, but the extensive day-to-day labor behind them.
This decision is a direct attack on organizations that preserve the practices and histories of BIPOC communities. It’s about which voices are allowed to thrive, which communities are deemed worthy of investment, and what kind of future is being imagined.
Organizations across Durham, especially those led by and serving Black and brown communities, are facing the same blows. Yet still, we remain committed to our people, our artists, and our mission.
We are the ones who hold the line, through election cycles and political shakeups. In good times and bad, we’re still here. And we’ll keep showing up, with or without federal support, because our communities deserve nothing less.
But we cannot do it alone. We need your support.
In the weeks and months ahead, we will band together with other Durham orgs to show the power of our community. We will not be erased. And we know you’ll be standing with us.
With deep gratitude,
