Michael J. Bobbitt is the executive director of the Massachusetts Cultural Council, working to elevate cultural life across the state with an emphasis on improving arts education, promoting diversity, and encouraging excellence in the Arts, Humanities, and Sciences.
In our conversation, Michael shares that he is actually moving away from language like “Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion” because it is inadequate to describe our collective task at hand. Instead, he is moving towards language like “anti-oppression” and “anti-supremacy.” He speaks to what might be possible if we can fully step into the promises of that language.
This conversation dances between creative exploration and pragmatic realities. Michael threads these two poles together so skillfully because he is himself a remarkably accomplished artist and leader. As former Artistic Director of the New Repertory Theater, and award-winning director of dozens of plays. And as a leader, he has worked tirelessly to elevate the experience of artists around the country.
Michael is standing for a world in which people of all identities who feel called into the artistry and culture-making work of creating new futures can answer that call. Together, we investigate what might be possible if we stop hiding from the systems of oppression that have been built over centuries. Instead, we can face them with compassion and work to dissolve them. In so doing, we could actually unleash our full creative potential as a species and build something truly beautiful together.
Show Notes:
MichaelBobbitt.com
facebook.com/michael.j.bobbitt
instagram.com/michaeljamesbobbitt
linkedin.com/in/michaeljbobbitt
twitter.com/mbobbitt
massculturalcouncil.org
newrep.org
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